VOLEUM-25 NO.

December-2015

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Farewell to His Excellency Ratu Epeli Nailatikau

( above attorney General sayed Kaiyum hands an official gift His excellency Ratu epeliNailatikauthe retiring president of Fiji. see report on Fiji News inside).

The change of guard as the new President of Fiji marches in with his predecessor.

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EDitORiAl

December-2015

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Sama Hanif plays key role in hosting press conferences

bank officer
and a hospitality liaison
with
FOG, The
Festival of Globe,
Ms. Sama Hanif is
versatile Fiji personality
closely
involved in major
cultural and social
events here in the
Bay
Area
and
beyond. After a very
successful
FOG
Festival in August

this year, Sama hosted press conferences for Nitin

Mukesh, Atif Aslam
and .. She
is plays lead role in
hosting the Mega
Fashion 2015 Expo.
Visiting Fiji actors
and directors were
highly
pleased
Samas hospitality at
the
SFO
Film
Festival held in
August this year.

FIJISUN
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photographer

510-423-2335
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Email: fijisun@gmail.com

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OFFERS

Photography
Fiji Sun TV
Family Book
Legal help
Immigration
Services

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IS NOW ON
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M H KOYA (JD)

Editor/publisher
510-677-4488

Pt. R. S.
Goundar(MA)
Assoc. editor/religion
510-326-0052

Robbie Michaelson
Contributing writer

SAMA HANIF CAN BE REACHED AT 510-938-3891

Haji Aiyub
(408) 480-8180

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December-2015

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From $17,991+Fees

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FIJISUN

India calls for UN Security Council action against terrorist outfits

UNITED NATIONS: India
has called upon the UN
Security Council to act decisively against the widening
arc of terrorism that has
struck Paris, Beirut and Syria
while the links between the
Islamic State and extremists
in Afghanistan and elsewhere are tightening.
"We urge the Security
Council to act against this
threat to international peace
and security with a sense of
urgency and within a defined
time-frame," India's permanent representative Asoke
Kumar Mukerji told the UN

General
Assembly
on
Monday during a debate on
the situation in Afghanistan.
"The first step the council
should undertake is to
strengthen the council's
sanctions regime structure,
in order to effectively impose
and implement the restrictions placed on the listed terrorist organisations, so as to
deny them sanctuaries and
safe haven," he said.
The Security Council's
failure to act against
Pakistan for providing a
sanctuary for anti-India terrorists and for releasing on

Pakistan Occupied Kashmir

will remain with Pakistan, J&K
with India: Farooq Abdullah
NEW DELHI : Former
Jammu and Kashmir Chief
Minister
and
National
Conference chief Farooq
Abdullah has said the
Pakistan Occupied Kashmir
(PoK) would remain with
Pakistan, while Jammu and
Kashmir would be with India.
"PoK is in Pakistan, and will
remain. J&K is in India, and
will remain. We need to
understand this," news
agency ANI reported Abdullah
as saying to reporters. "War is
not the solution, only lives are
lost. Dialogue is the only
option," he added. The controversial statement, seen as
endorsing the Pakistan line on
Kashmir, immediately triggered an angry rebuttal from
many leaders. "The 1994
Parliament resolution clearly

said that Pakistan Occupied

Kashmir is constitutionally a
part of India," Jammu and
Kashmir's Deputy Chief
Minister Nirmal Singh said.
India and Pakistan have
fought three wars since independence and partition in
1947, two over Kashmir. The
disputed frontier is one of the
world's most heavily militarised regions. Border clashes and ceasefire violations at
the Line of Control also pose a
constant risk of escalation of
tension between the two
countries.

bail Lashkar-e-Taiba's 2008

Mumbai attack mastermind
Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi has
been a sore point for India.
The growing violence in
Afghanistan between the
Taliban and the Islamic State
along with its affiliates was
an "alarming" development,
he said, citing secretary general Ban Ki-moon's report on
the situation in that nation.
In particular he drew
attention to Ban's report that
most of the Islamic Stateaffiliated
fighters
in
Afghanistan are made up
mostly of "disaffected former

members of the Afghan

Taliban,
Tehrik-e-Taliban
Pakistan, or groups previously associated with alQaida."
In view of these developments and the rising tide of
terrorist violence around the
world, the international community should rethink the
time table for troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, Mukerji
said.
In a reversal of policy,
President Barack Obama
announced in October that
the United States will keep its
troop strength at 9,800

through next year, but will

reduce it to about 5,500 by
the time he leaves office in
January 2017.
Calling
India
"Afghanistan's first strategic
partner", Mukerji spoke of the
close bilateral ties between
the two nations and
expressed
regret
over
restrictions on transit.
"Afghanistan will be able
to achieve its optimal economic potential only if it is
allowed freedom of transit to
major markets in South
Asia," he said. Without naming Pakistan, he added, "We

regret that this freedom continues to be denied to

Afghanistan." Islamabad has
blocked direct access to
India for trucks bringing
Afghanistan's exports.
"India has opened its markets to all Afghan exports,
and is willing to receive
Afghan trucks on its territory,"
Mukerji said. "India remains
committed to greater regional integration, and is open to
join and support all such
regional initiatives, including
the expansion of the Afghan
Pakistan Trade and Transit
Agreement."

India and Pakistan should have

never been divided: Milkha
W

ith the Indian government

delaying granting permission for the proposed
Indo-Pak cricket series, the debate
about the propriety of India resuming
sporting ties with Pakistan has been
making the headlines in the past few
days. While the public opinion over
the issue is divided, India's most celebrated athlete, Milkha Singh,
minces no words when he says,
"Kyun nahi khelna chahiye? India aur
Pakistan ek dusre ke saath kehlna
chahiye. Sports hotha hai pyar badhane ke liye, politics karne ke liye
nahi." That a man whose parents
were hacked to death in front of his
eyes in the aftermath of IndiaPakistan partition, is championing
the message of love between India
and Pakistan does seem intriguing.
Does that mean he has made peace
with the ghosts of murder of his family members? Not quite. "No. Losing
my family in those riots is still as
fresh in mind and haunts to this day.

But the partition of India and the violence that ensued was a of dirty politics, not the will of the people. If you
ask me, India and Pakistan should
never have been divided, it was just
petty political upmanship at play, the
consequences of which the poor
people of both countries had to bear
unfortunately,"
he
exclaims.
Recalling the warm welcome he
received from the people of Pakistan
when he defeated Abdul Khaliq in
that historic 200 meters run in
Lahore, 1960, that earned him the
soubriquet of Fying Sikh from the

then Pakistani premier, General

Ayub Khan, Milkha says, "We were a
contingent of 50 athletes travelling in
a bus to Pakistan. Upon reaching the
Wagah border, the Pakistani officials
called out for me and took me on an
open top jeep. I can never forget how
thousands of Pakistanis on the
streets cheered me on. It just goes to
show that the people on both sides of
the border don't hate each other."
Staying on the subject of love, Milkha
Singh's love affair with Hyderabad is
stuff of
legend. Afterall, he discovered his
life's calling after finishing sixth in a
cross country run when stationed at
the EME Centre in Secunderabad in
1951. He was posted in the city for
nine years and has many fond memories of the city. But strangely
enough not a single city girl caught
his attention during the stay. "Ab
hamara pehla pyar tho Delhi mein
thi, jaise film mein bataya. Hamara
dil usipe tha," he says signing off.

Pakistan, Nepal call for 'dialogue' to improve relations with India

ndia's
neighbours,
on
Wednesday, called for "dialogue" to improve mutual relations, with Pakistan calling for a
revival of the composite framework
and Nepal hoping that "tension"
over the promulgation of constitution would dissipate and give way to
better ties. Pakistani High
Commissioner to India Abdul Basit
said that a stable and effective
regional cooperative architecture
was not possible on shaky interstate relations. He laid stress on the
need for talks to achieve peace.
Basit and Nepal's Ambassador to
India Deep Kumar Upadhyay were
speaking at a seminar on Indo-Pak

relations organised by NGO

Ambassadors of Goodwill Across
Borders here.
"In order to achieve peace we
need to talk to each other. It's important that we talk so as to overcome
the challenges. We need not reinvent the wheel. The composite dialogue framework is all encompassing and includes everything such as
terrorism, Kashmir, Sir Creek,"
Basit said.
The
Pakistani
High
Commissioner insisted that in his
capacity he was doing everything
necessary to "make this happen".
"We owe it to posterity to resolve
our disputes and leave a legacy of

peace and friendship." Meanwhile,

speaking on the same theme,
Upadhyay observed that Nepal has
"never been colonised" in its history,
without making any direct reference
to India's role in the ongoing crisis
situation in the Himalayan country.
"There are issues even within a

family. In the same way, there is tension between the governments of

the two countries (India and Nepal)
at the moment," he said.
Referring to the April 2015 earthquake in Nepal, which devastated
parts of the country, Upadhyay said
that "warmth" exuded by the people
of both the nations in the aftermath
of the quake gives him hope for better times ahead. "There's no gas in
Nepal because it is completely
dependent on India for supply of
gas. There's a humanitarian crisis,"
he said.
There has been strain in IndiaNepal relations in recent weeks in
the wake of protests by Indian-ori-

gin Madhesis against the new

Constitution, with Kathmandu
blaming India for fuel shortages by
not allowing fuel trucks to cross the
border into Nepal.
India has been maintaining that
the supply was obstructed due to
protests on the Nepalese side and
has appealed to Nepal to resolve
the political crisis.
Veteran journalist Kuldip Nayar,
who was also present on the occasion, stressed on the need for amity
between India and Pakistan recalling how Pakistan's slain Prime
Minister Benazir Bhutto had talked
about a "borderless subcontinent"
to him.

FIJISUN

www.fijisun-usa.com

lOcal neWs

Fiji Sun USA to revive its Miss Fiji USA

along with a 40 Plus Fiji Beauties

ur
pianstaking
presentation first
ever Fiji beauty
pageant MS FIJI USA featured over 18 years ago
was scretely hijacked by
FANA and used for their
benefit and popularity.
However, a few years it
was marred by allegations
mistreatment
of
contenstants. They were
forced to eventually drop
the pageant.
Beginning 2016, Fji Sun
USA will be the sole host of
the event to be featured at
the Festival of Globe for
much bigger participation
and popularity for all contenstants.
In additon, the pageant

December-2015

Sumeet Naidu leads

Cinematix Pro

orking in collaboration with FIJI

SUN USA at
Festival of Globe and
several major entertainment events, freelance
photographer has decided to step into movie
making.
Sumeets plan fits
right into Fiji Sun USAs
own films division.
Star search
After an exploratory
wok in Fiji last week, Fiji
Sun USA Films Davison
has already launched a
star search for lead role
will also feature a 40 Plus
Fiji beauties.
We
are
currently

searching for female contentants of all ages and a

team of organizers to help

host the event. Please fell

free to email us at
fijisun@gmail.com

for their short film. All

interested young artists
are requested to contact
Sumeet at 510-921-6233

Text Sumeet at 510-921-6233

SHOCKING PRICE HIKE AT

NEWLY ACQUIRED SHOP

recently
acquired grocery
store with no
prior experience came
with an aggressive plan
to make money
overnight in a fiercely
competitive retail market already saturated by
Fiji operators. With no

Kava Bar offers nice venue for

private parties and events
W

ith nice and

cozy seati
n
g
arrangement, the Kava
Bar on San Bruno
Avenue, is steadily
becoming a sought
after place for private
gatherings and parties
for islanders.
We have strict
rules about drinking

that we enforce rigidly, explained the

owner and pointed to
a printed poster on the
wall that explains the
rules.

Clients can fire the

hall and bring in their
own food to contain
costs. Kava Bar already
boasts for hosting several parties.

visible rearrangements,
improved outlook or
extra services for customer satisfaction, the
first the new owners did
was price hike on all
items. Theres no per
pound marked on meet
packets but what customer paid $15 now

pay $18.75 and over. A

packet of Fijis breakfast
crackers costs almost
$12. The price hike is
visible right across the
isles on almost all
items. Several customers complained not
to buy from the shop for
undue price boost.

fiji news

December-2015

FIJISuN

PM meets with French President

PM's son Max Key caught

up in Fiji party island blaze
Prime Minister John
Key's son has reportedly
been caught in a fire
drama at a popular Fijian
party island.
Dramatic video posted
on social media shows the
moments a fire ripped
through Fiji's popular
resort
destination
Beachcomber
Island's
bures, where a spring
break party that had
attracted hordes of young
New Zealand partygoers
was underway.
In a video posted to
Instagram, a man can be
heard shouting "everyone
to the boat" amid shrieks,

www.fijisun-usa.com

as palm trees burn around

them. Kiwis posting on the
Spring Break Facebook
page wrote that the fire
happened
overnight
Thursday, and that the
police and fire investigators were going through
the resort the next day.
Hundreds of young New
Zealanders were evacuated during the blaze and
nzherald.co.nz said it had
confirmed that Max Key
was among the Spring
Break attendees.
Key posted a photo of
himself on Beachcomber
island on his Instagram
account earlier this week.

Prime Minister Voreqe

Bainimarama along with
other Pacific Leaders met
with the French President,
Francois Hollande during
the 4th France-Oceania
Summit in Paris.
Bainimarama informed
President Hollande that Fiji
values its membership of
the Melanesian Spearhead
Group and has a strong
bond with its Melanesian
brothers. He says the
Pacific Region is in clear
and present danger and it
is time for the world to act

to save the Region. He further says that Fiji will continue to work with France to

meet the aspirations of the

people of New Caledonia.
Bainimarama also com-

mended France for the

support it has provided Fiji
through its Pacific Fund.

Delana calls for more transparency from sports leaders

ASSISTANT Minister
for Youth and Sports
Iliesa Delana has urged
sporting bodies to practise good governance as
he formalised the opening
of the Fiji National Sports
Conference yesterday at
the Holiday Inn in Suva.
Delana said in practising the principles, the
effects would be able to
transcend into the performance of the athletes.
"We as sports administrators are expected with
the resources entrusted

to us to ensure our athletes

get
maximum
results. Good governance
in sports is a prerequisite
for sport to fully serve its
role as a vehicle of positive values, which contribute to personal development.
"We all have a role in
working
together
to
uphold integrity of sport
and to ensure transparency," he said.
His
sentiments
stemmed
from
the
increase in budget fund-

Teen testifies
against uncle
in rape case

Radrodro trial
date set for
August 2016

A 16-year-old girl who

was the victim of a rape
case took the stand in
the Suva High Court
today. She told the court
that she was sleeping in
her parents bedroom
when she was allegedly
raped by her uncle. The
alleged incident happened in Naitasiri in
September 2012. She
told the court that she
was also impregnated
by her uncle. She said
that she was staying
with her uncle and aunt
as her parents went to
Suva to sell their produce. The 46-year-old
man is charged with
one count of raping the
girl when she was 13
years old. He has
pleaded not guilty. The
trial will continue this
afternoon.

The trial date has been set

for former Transport Ministry
spokesperson Sainiana
Radrodro who is charged
with 11 counts of obtaining a
financial advantage by
deception. The prosecution
will call 15 witnesses and
provide 30 documents while
the defence counsel will
have 4 witnesses. The prosecution told the court that
the defence counsel has not
agreed to any proposed
agreed facts in the case.
The defence counsel will
reply to the proposed agreed
facts within two weeks. It is
alleged that between May
2010 and June 2011,
Sainiana Radrodro obtained
financial advantage by falsely stating that the Minister of
Works, Transport and Public
Utilities had requested
$9,569 on more than 11 separate occasions.

Nausori Town to be decorated

for Christmas next week
People can expect
Christmas decorations in
Nausori town by next
week. The CEO of Nausori
Town Council Azam Khan
says they are working with
the
Tebara
Carnival
Committee to decorate the
town with Christmas trees
and lights. He says they

are planning to organise

carol singing at Syria Park
and they may also organise a celebration to welcome the New Year.
Nausori
Town
has
recently gone under a
major facelift with the
opening of the new bus
stand and market.

Youth Leader Taitusi

Savou
told
Acting
Prime Minister Aiyaz
Sayed-Khaiyum at the
National
Youth
Dialogue on Violence
Against Women today
that he has lost faith in
Fijis criminal justice
system.
Savou told SayedKhaiyum
that
his
alleged assault case
disappeared due to

certain reasons at the

Totogo Police Station in
2013. He claims that he
was sexually assaulted
by a work mate during
working hours while
being employed at a
multinational company
at Walu Bay in 2013.
Savou says police
officers at the Totogo
Police Station told him
the court had closed
his case although no

ing from the State to the

Fiji
National
Sports
Commission who provide
the sporting federations
with grants to carry out
aspects of their duties or
for competitions.
"Sport has received a
significant
boost
of
$5.7million to $16.9million
on the 2016 Ministry
Budget.
"This should be great
news for sportsmen and
women, trainers and
administrators. The ministry plays a lead role in

the overall development

of sports in Fiji.
"It is our role to develop our sporting infrastructure, whether it is building
new facilities or improving
existing ones," he said.
The conference was
attended by representatives from all sporting
organisations around the
country with the discussions centred on good
governance, better planning and grant allocations
to specific sporting bodies.

Miss Fiji wants to bring

out the very best from
within herself
Miss Fiji Zaira Begg
says taking part in the Miss
Pacific Pageant is not only
about competing with other
queens. 21-year-old Begg
says she wants to bring out
the very best from within
herself. She says it does
not matter where one
comes from and what religion one follows. Begg
also describes her costume.
Meanwhile,
Damodar
Brothers
launched Beggs video
commercial in which she is
promoting Fiji and is
encouraging young women
to take up similar type of
challenges.Executive
Director Div Damodar says
this video will be played at
the beginning of every
movie in all Damodar
Cinemas. The 2015 Miss

Pacific Pageant will be

held from the 6th to the
13th of next month in
Rarotonga, Cook Islands.

Sexual assault claim by youth leader For Advertising on

one had been charged.
He then said that he
has emails and recorded conversations with
the police officers.
Savou says he feels
betrayed by the police.
The Acting Prime
Minister says he will try
and address the issue
through his office. He
says they have dealt
with a lot of these types
of issues in the past.

RAdio LehRen
Call BaBu lal

510-706-5013
listen Every Sunday from 3PM to 5PM

FIJISUN

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fiji news

December-2015

Police, LTA to focus on combined festive season operation

The Fiji Police Force
Traffic Department and
the
Land
Transport
Authority will focus on
regaining the trust of the
public through its combined festive season
operation.
Police Director of
Traffic Mahesh Mishra
says this is because there
are many cases of reckless driving that is not

being reported to the

police. He says people
should trust the Police
and the Land Transport
Authority and report reckless drivers. Mishra has
given his assurance that
proper procedures will be
followed when people
lodge complaints. 43,375
traffic infringements have
been recorded by the
Police Traffic department

Vunivaivai landowners to
continue discussions on
Goodman fielder chicken shed
Landowners of Vunivaivai,
Nakelo closed the road last
week leading to their land
where Goodman Fielder has
a chicken shed.
Police Spokesperson Ana
Naisoro says the landowners
called the police to guard the
place as they held discussions with TLTB and
Goodman
Fielder.
Spokesperson of the Clan of
Naluna, Jiutasa Bila says they
had to close the road so that
they can have discussions
with the two stakeholders on
some issues. Bila claims the
land was given to Goodman
Fielder without their clans
permission and that the chicken shed is on a reserved land.
He says another clan
called the Vutuvo gave the
land to Goodman Fielder with-

out their knowledge and in the

result their clan was not getting the equal amount of lease
money as the Vutuvo clan.
TLTB Central Eastern
Manager Ela Manuku says
the discussion was to clarify
to the landowners of
Vunivaivai of the leasing of
the land and whether the land
is a reserved land.
Manuku says landowners
are claiming that the chicken
shed is on a reserve land but
he says otherwise.
Manuku says in regards to
distributing of lease money,
before the leaders of each
clan distributes the lease
money but now each individual can have their own
account and have TLTB transfer their lease money to their
account.

as of last Thursday.
The road death toll
currently stands at 61
compared to 45 for the
same period last year,
with the latest road victim
being a newly born baby.
At least 200 drivers have
been booked for not following seat belt regulations and driving without
a driver's license in the
last two days.

Fiji Red Cross working

on extending services to
Eastern Division
The Fiji Red Cross
Society is working on
extending its services to the
Eastern Division. Director
General of the Fiji Red
Cross, Filipe Nainoca says
they are currently in talks
with the Commissioner
Eastern's Office for a suitable location for their
branch. Nainoca says they
would like to position themselves especially in the
islands as they are difficult
to reach in times of emergencies. He Says the Fiji
Red Cross Society is targeting to help 131 communities
and 36,305 people next
year and they have a total of
15
branches
across
Fiji.They will be reviving the
Rotuma and Rabi branches
from next year. Nainoca
says last year they helped
18,865 people.

FIJI ESTABLISHES DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS

WITH THE REPUBLIC OF HONDURAS
Fijis Foreign Affairs
Minister, Hon. Ratu Inoke
Kubuabola
and
the
Secretary of State of
Foreign
Affairs
and
International Cooperation of
the Republic of Honduras,
Hon. Arturo Alvarez, signed
a joint communiqu formalizing the establishment of
diplomatic
relations
between the two countries.
The
two
Ministers
expressed the need to
strengthen bilateral relations and friendly ties and
also expand collaboration
at the international fora on
the basis of the principles of
international law and the
UN Charter. This year
marks Hondurass seventieth anniversary after its
admission as a member of
the United Nations on 17

December 1945. Minister

Alvarez expressed the
readiness of the Republic of
Honduras to provide assistance to Fiji in various fields
of common interest. Both,
Fiji and Honduras, have
strong tourism sectors.

Minister
Kubuabola
thanked Honduras for supporting Fiji in its UN initiatives, and looked forward to
closer cooperation between
the two countries within the
framework of the United
Nations.

HON PM BAINIMARAMA SPEECH AT COMMONWEALTH BUSINESS FORUM 2015

Bula vinaka and a very
good morning to you all.
Theres an old proverb
that
we
have
also
embraced in Fiji: If you
want to get rich, first you
have to build roads.
I used this proverb three
years ago in my national
budget address announcing the biggest ever investment by any Fijian
Government in our national road network. And I note
that my friend the Chinese
President, Xi Jinping, used
the same quote last year at
the APEC summit. When
China and 20 other Asian
nations signed a memorandum of understanding
on the Asia Infrastructure
Investment Bank - Chinas
answer to the World Bank.
Its an acknowledgement that no nation can
prosper if it doesnt have
adequate roads and all the
other national infrastructure needed to develop a
modern nation State.
Which is why Im delighted
to be here in Malta with
Fiji now back in the
Commonwealth for this
Commonwealth Business
Forum with its theme
Investing in Infrastructure:
Building for the Long
Term.
Can I first thank Lord
Marland Odstock, the

Chairman
of
the
Commonwealth Enterprise
and Investment Council,
for his invitation to be part
of this event.
As I look around the
room I realise that this is
the great strength of the
Commonwealth not only
its diversity and resilience
but its importance as a
place of learning. The
independent nations that
were once part of the old
British Empire still able, in
the new millennium, to
come together to swap
experiences and discuss
our common challenges.
And above all, how to build
the solid economic foundations needed to provide
sustainable and prosperous futures for our people.
Like many of you, Fiji
sees the development of
our national infrastructure
as the key to unlocking our
economic potential. And it
has been a mainstay of the
comprehensive
reform
program we have put in
place to transform our
economy and unlock the
potential of the Fijian people.
First, we had to upend
the existing political order
that had kept Fiji in a state
of perpetual division and
arrested
development
since our independence

from Britain in 1970. Our

revolution cost us our
place
in
the
Commonwealth for five
years and fractured some
of our traditional relationships. But we make no
apology for it. Because the
Fiji that has emerged from
that process of radical
change is one of genuine
opportunity for every citizen, whatever their background. And our new
Constitution provides us
with our first genuinely
democratic blueprint.
For the first time, we
have a Parliament elected
on the basis of equal votes
of equal value instead of
being skewed through an
electoral system that divided us Fijians on an ethnic
basis a legacy of our
colonial era. We now have
common and equal citizenry and, just as important, a

common identity. Every citizen is a Fijian for the first

time. And our Constitution
also provides for an
unprecedented range of
social and economic rights
that are empowering every
Fijian, apart from the usual
civil and political rights.
So we are finally a genuine democracy. A better
and true democracy. And
we can now proceed in
earnest with another pillar
of our reform program
the transformation of our
economy to improve the
lives of all of our people. To
finally fulfill the great promise
Fiji
had
at
Independence that we
squandered over the years
as we argued about rights
for some of our citizens
rather than rights for all, as
we delved deeper and
deeper into systemic corruption. We continued to
argue over parochial matters driven by elitism,
cronyism and communalism. We could not move
forward together as one
nation, one people.
Im pleased to report
that our new political order
our new direction, our
prudent economic management and our new
Constitution

has
unleashed one of the
greatest periods of eco-

nomic growth in our

nations history. Last year,
the Fijian economy grew
by 5.3 per cent eclipsing
our larger neighbours. And
we are on target to achieve
a record sixth consecutive
year of growth this year.
We are also riding an
investment wave amounting to 25 per cent of GDP
in the past two years, with
a similar forecast for 2015.
Currently, 75 per cent of
this investment is by the
private sector. But only a
few years ago, the bulk of
the investment was from
my Governments program
to invest in infrastructure.
That focus on investing in
infrastructure is being
maintained. Indeed, 40 per
cent of government spend
is on building infrastructure
and State assets.
We are putting an end
to the years of neglect. Of
poor roads or no roads at
all. Ports that were slow
and inefficient. Large
areas of the country without access to electricity
and clean water. And much
of our physical infrastructure crumbling such as
our capitals water supply because too much of it
dated back to colonial
times and too little had
been done to maintain it.
Mr Chairman, all that is

steadily being reversed.

And Fiji is now a case
study of the benefits of
governments embarking
on a responsible program
of fiscal expansion to fund
infrastructure
development.
As
stated,
Government
capital
expenditure has increased
from an average of 19 percent in the period 2001 to
2005 to 40 percent of total
government expenditure in
2015. As I keep telling our
people, we are borrowing
not like previous governments to fund our day-today expenditure but to lay
the foundations for the
economic expansion that
improved
infrastructure
brings. In doing so, we are
unleashing our nations
potential and the potential
of our people. And also
making Fiji a much more
attractive destination for
the global investment community. We have already
seen a sharp rise in confidence in the domestic private sector and among foreign investors. New bank
lending for investment purposes has risen by nearly
95 per cent. And imports of
goods for investment excluding aircraft - rose by
7.2 percent to June 2014
the most recent figures
available.

08

iNDia NEWs

December-2015

www.fijisun-usa.com

FIJISUN

India will fulfil responsibilities towards climate change: Modi to Obama

Paris : Prime Minister
Narendra Modi today said
India will fulfil all its responsibilities with regard to climate
change as he met US
President Barack Obama on
the sidelines of the climate
summit here.
Modi, in his meeting with
Obama, also appreciated the
openness with which the US
President addresses issues
with him and said it will help
in developing a better understanding.
"India will fulfil expectations from it and its responsibilities... the country is working to take forward development and (protecting) environment together," Modi said
at a joint press event with
Obama. The Prime Minister
also mentioned India's ambitious target of producing 175
GW of renewable energy.
Prime Minister's comments came in the backdrop
of India's strong resentment
to US Secretary of State
John Kerry's statement that
India would be a "challenge"
at the climate conference.
Environment
Minister
Prakash
Javadekar
described the comments as
"unwarranted".
Javadekar and Kerry
accompanied Modi and
Obama, respectively, along
with other senior ministers
and officials.
Modi also talked about
solar alliance initiative saying
it will help in fulfilling the
dreams which have brought
the countries together here.

Modi meets Sharif at climate summit in Paris

PM narendra Modi and US President Barack Obama in a meeting

during CoP 21, Un Climate Change Conference, in Paris on Monday.

Ahead of his talks with

Obama, Modi had said there
was an urgent need to craft a
comprehensive, equitable
and durable agreement to
limit global warming.
President Obama said
India must curb its carbon
dioxide pollution even while it
works to eradicate poverty,
prioritise growth and promote
economic development.
He also said climate
change was one of the major
areas for deeper cooperation
between the US and India.
President Obama emphasised that it was a pleasure to
meet with his friend and
partner.
We agree that (climate
change) is an urgent threat.
We welcome India's leadership on this issue, Obama
said. While he said the Paris
meeting should protect the
possibility of countries like

India to pursue their fight

against poverty, the US
President also clearly stated
that serious climate commitments from all parties were
absolutely necessary.
The agreement "has to
reflect serious and ambitious
actions by all countries", he
insisted. After meeting
Obama, Modi said, "India is
the first country in the world,
protecting the earth and protecting the environment,
Mahatma Gandhi was its
champion.
So for India it's a very
important thing. We have
kept very big targets."
Ministry of External Affairs
Spokesperson Vikas Swarup
tweeted, "An opportunity for
engagement. The leaders of
the 2 largest democracies
exchange views on sidelines
of #COP21, along with a picture of the bilateral meeting.

Prime Minister Narendra

Modi on Monday held a brief
meeting with Pakistani Premier
Nawaz Sharif as world leaders
converged here for the
Conference of Parties (CoP)
climate summit that got underway. PM @narendramodi
meets PM Nawaz Sharif at
COP 21 in Paris," external
affairs ministry spokesman
Vikas Swarup tweeted along
with a picture of the two leaders
shaking hands.
The two leaders were then
seen sitting on the same sofa
and engaging in an animated
discussion for a brief while.
After meeting Prime Minister
Modi, Sharif told Pakistani
media that his country attaches
highest significance to its principled stance.
"Pakistan desires better
bilateral relations with India,"
he said. "We want peace without any compromise on the dignity and honour of Pakistan,"
Geo TV quoted Sharif as saying.
This was the first meeting
between the two leaders since
they met on the sidelines of the
Shanghai
Cooperation
Organisation (SCO) meeting in
Ufa, Russia, in July this year.
After the meeting, they directed
their foreign secretaries to initiate the process of renewal of
talks, including meetings
between the national security

Of queer love and gay pride

Members and supporters of the lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender
(LGBT) community
attend the eighth
Delhi Queer Pride
parade in new
Delhi Marching in
solidarity and in
celebration of their
diversity, the LGBT
community
demanded equal
legal, social and
medical rights.

Prime Minister narendra Modi and his Pakistani counterpart

nawaz Sharif talk in Paris on the sidelines of CoP 21 summit on
climate change on Monday.

advisers of the two countries.

However, talks between Indian
National Security Adviser Ajit
Doval and his Pakistani counterpart Sartaz Aziz scheduled
to be held in New Delhi in
August this year were cancelled after the Pakistan high
commission in India insisted on
inviting Hurriyat leaders for a
reception in honour of Aziz.
On Saturday, on the sidelines of the Commonwealth
Heads of Government Meeting
(CHOGM) in Valletta, Malta,
Sharif told British Premier
David Cameron during a bilateral meeting that Islamabad

was ready for unconditional

talks with New Delhi. The Paris
meeting has now again
sparked hopes of renewal of
the dialogue process between
the two sides. Monday's meeting also comes at a time when
the Indian cricket board is
awaiting permission from the
government to hold a bilateral
cricket series with Pakistan at
the neutral venue of Sri Lanka
tentatively scheduled for midDecember.
Sharif has already given his
permission to the Pakistan
Cricket Board (PCB) for the
series.

Not retiring from politics: Parrikar

Panaji : A day after
hinting at possible retirement, Defence Minister
Manohar Parrikar on
Monday took to Twitter to
insist that retirement from
politics was not on cards.
On his Twitter handle,
Parrikar, a former Goa
chief minister, said: "My
correct statement - At the
age of 60, normally people think of
retirement and perhaps I would have
also... But I had to take bigger responsibilities at the Centre. I assure you I
will come back only after finishing the

task I am given." On Sunday,

Parrikar had hinted at retirement while speaking at the
Lokmanya Multipurpose CoOperative Credit Society in
Mapusa town, about 10-km
north of Panaji. "After 60
(years), one has to think
about retirement. I turn 60 on
December 13, therefore, I
had started thinking about
retirement two-three years back. "I
have to intensify that, therefore, I don't
feel inclined to take up big responsibilities," said Parrikar, one of the state's
tallest politicians.

Spy racket busted; BSF man, ISI agent held

new DeLhi : The Delhi Police
today busted an espionage racket
by arresting a serving BSF man
and a suspected ISI operative from
whom classified documents having
implications on national security
were recovered.
Kafaitullah Khan, alias Master
Raja (44), a resident of Kalai village in Rajouri district of Jammu
and Kashmir, is allegedly a handler
of Pakistan Intelligence Operative
(PIO) and head constable Abdul
Rasheed is a dispatch rider with
the BSF G Branch (intelligence
wing) at Rajouri. Both are reportedly distant cousins.
Khan has contacts in different
security agencies through which he
was procuring secret information,
detrimental to the security of the
country, said Ravindra Yadav,
Joint Commissioner of Police

(Crime Branch). While Khan was

arrested from the New Delhi railway station on November 27,
Rasheed was arrested from
Jammu today.
Yadav said Khan also had
sources in the Indian Army and
Indian Air Force.
Sources said Khan was
enrolled in the BSF in September,
1989, but didnt join the force. He
joined the Jammu and Kashmir
Police in 1990 but resigned after
nine months. He became an Over
Ground Worker for the militants in
the 1990s. The police had apprehended him several times but he
could not be booked for want of
evidence, a source said.
Rasheed is one of the main
sources of Khan. Both of them
have been arrested under the provisions of the Official Secrets Act,

BSF head constable abdul Rasheed (L) and iSi operative Kafaitullah
Khan (R) are based in Rajouri.

Yadav said. Sources in the BSF

said the Delhi Police had contacted
them regarding Rasheed around

three days ago. Upon interrogating Rasheed, we found that prima

facie what the police said was true.

He was giving information mostly

about the units and locations of the
army and the BSF. So we handed
him to the police, a source said.
An FIR (a copy is with The
Tribune) in this regard was registered by the Crime Branch on
November 16. The FIR reads that
a secret informer informed the
Crime Branch about anti-national
activities supported by Pakistanbased intelligence operatives. As
per the information, the PIO (ISI
agent) is having an Indian handler
who is collecting information
regarding the deployment of army
and BSF in Jammu and Kashmir
and passing it across the border,
which can be hugely detrimental to
national security, the FIR read.
The FIR mentions that the handler is believed to have a pan-India
network of informers. Rasheed is

passing secret information (about

army, BSF, Air Force) to Khan in
lieu of money and Khan is forwarding it to the PIO. The information
contained can be directly or indirectly used by the enemy country,
the FIR said. On November 26,
Khan had reportedly boarded a
train to Bhopal from Jammu. He
was apprehended from Delhi on
November 27 and few documents
having implications on national
security were allegedly recovered
from him. Khan had told the police
that he was working as a library
assistant at Higher Secondary
School, Manjakote. In 2013, he
had visited Pakistan. During his
stay there, he came in contact with
an ISI agent and in lieu of monetary considerations agreed to provide secret information about
defence forces, Yadav said.

FIJISUN

www.fijisun-usa.com

india newS

december-2015

09

Clashes, adjournments in LS during intolerance debate

new delhi, novemBer 30
Lok Sabha today witnessed clashes and repeated adjournments as it took
up the debate on intolerance with the Opposition targeting the government and
triggering a storm after a
CPI(M) member attributed
Hindu leader comments to
Home Minister Rajnath
Singh who denied it.
The comments by Mohd
Salim, who cited a report in a
news magazine while initiating the debate on 'intolerance, led to a deadlock with
the ruling side demanding
that he either withdraw these
comments or apologise.
The logjam, because of
which the House was
adjourned four times, was
resolved in the evening after
Speaker Sumitra Mahajan
expunged the remarks related to the allegations.
This paved the way for
resumption of the debate
during which opposition parties like CPI(M) and
Congress attacked the government, alleging that intolerance had increased since
the NDA government came.
The BJP hit back by saying that incidents, which
were being projected by the
opposition as examples of
'intolerance', had been taking place in the country for
decades.
Its
member

Meenakshi Lekhi also cited

Home Ministry figures to
insist that incidents of communal violence had come
since NDA came to power.
Earlier, the ruling and the
opposition sides locked
horns after Salim alleged
that Singh was quoted by the
magazine as having made
the 'Hindu leader' remark
after Narendra Modi became
Prime Minister last year.
Citing the magazine, Salim
said Singh had made the
remark at an internal meeting of RSS.
Singh vehemently denied
it and said he was never hurt
so much in his Parliamentary
career as he was today.
"Mohd Salim levelled a
serious allegation against
me. He should say when and
where I made such a statement or apologise.... A Home
Minister who makes such a
statement has no moral right
to be the Home Minister. I
speak after weighing every
word... People know Rajnath
Singh can never make such
a statement," Singh said.
When some BJP members questioned whether he
was present when such a
reported comment was
made, the CPM member
said, "I don't have such misfortune to attend RSS meeting."
Members in the treasury

HC transfers 84 riots
case involving Sajjan
to another court
new delhi : The Delhi
High Court today transferred from one trial court
to another a 1984 anti-Sikh
riots
case
involving
Congress leader Sajjan
Kumar, "in view of the controversy generated" over
allegations that the evidence was not being properly recorded. While transferring the case from
Karkardooma court to
Patiala
House
court,
Justice Siddharth Mridul
made it clear that the transfer was "warranted to protect and uphold the dignity
of the judicial system and
to promote the faith of citizens in courts of law".
It is my considered view
that it would be necessary
and expedient so to do in
interest of justice and in
view of the controversy
generated in the present
case to transfer it to another criminal court of equal
jurisdiction," Justice Mridul
said. The high court also
requested the District and
Sessions Judge, Patiala
House court, to video
record the proceedings at
the cost of the parties in the
case, the petitioner and
CBI. The high court said
the order was being
passed "with the consent of
the parties appearing
before it", that included the
petitioner Joginder Singh

and the CBI.

It further made clear that
the "order has been occasioned in interest of justice
and with consent of parties
before us".
"The directions proposed to be issued are with
the view to render judicial
officers immune from controversy and to protect their
haloed reputation. It is,
therefore, reiterated that
the present order is not a
comment on conduct of
judicial officer hearing the
present case, save and
except to reaffirm the faith
that the public reposes in
that judicial officer," the
high court said in its order.
"In view of the foregoing, the case pending
before the Karkardooma
court is transferred to
District and Sessions
Judge, Patiala House
court, forthwith," the high
court added.

A combination photo shows Home Minister Rajnath Singh (left) and

CPI(M) leader Mohd Salim in Lok Sabha during the winter session of
Parliament in New Delhi on Monday.

benches, including Minister

of State for Parliamentary
Affairs Rajiv Pratap Rudy,
demanded that Salim withdraw his remark till the
Speaker takes a view by
examining all sides, including authenticity of the report.
At this point, Rudy said it
would be difficult to run the
House till he withdraws his
comments. The Speaker
asked Salim to agree to this
but he declined. He, however, told the Speaker that the
remarks may not be made
part of the record till she verifies it.
Salim insisted that he was
not levelling any allegation
nor wanted to cast any
aspersion on Singh but was
only quoting from a reputed

weekly. He said neither the

Home Minister nor the government has ever denied the
report.
At the same time, Salim
acknowledged that it was the
Home Minister who was
among the first from the government to speak against
Dadri lynching incident.
B Mahtab (BJD) sided
with the treasury benches
and quoted the Rule book to
say that an allegation against
a minister or member cannot
be made without giving prior
notice.
Saugata Roy, whose
party TMC is a bitter of
CPI(M), however, batted for
Salim by citing another rule.
Amid the uproar, Salim
walked to the Lok Sabha

Secretary General and

authenticated the article containing Singh's alleged
remarks.
When the BJP members
demanded withdrawal of the
remarks by Salim, he said he
had only quoted from an article in a publication. In a way,
he said, he has helped the
minister as the Intelligence
Bureau and police should
have told him about this earlier as the issue was dated
November 16.
The Speaker told the
member that she was keeping his remarks out of
records till she examined
them.
After
repeated
adjournments, the Speaker
announced that the portion
related to the allegation had
been expunged as no prior
notice had been given by
Salim. As the debate
resumed, Salim alleged that
'intolerance' was on the rise
and the government had
failed to check this.
To press his point, he
referred to returning of
awards by writers, artist, filmmakers etc.
"In the name of religion,
atrocities are being committed and the government is
keep silent instead of taking
strong action against killing
of minorities, dalit and rationalists," alleged the CPI(M)
member who had given

notice for a debate on the

subject. Making religion as
shield against injustice is not
a sustainable proposition, he
said. A series of incidents is a
reflection of the fact that
there is some problem in
"fundamental thinking" and
untruth and violence has
become order of the day, he
said.
"It is not Satyameya
Jayate but Asatyameya
Jayete...It is not Ashimsa
Parmo Dharma but Himsha
Parmo Dharma," he alleged.
The remark of the Gen VK
Singh over the dalit killing in
Haryana was also raised by
Salim. Congress member
KC Venugopal said it is only
in the last 15-16 months that
the chain of the events has
led to "destruction of secular
fabric" of the country.
He raised the Dadri issue,
killing of dalit in Haryana,
unbridled comments by various ministers on intolerance.
"No mature remark from
the Prime Minister came
even after series of incidents
of intolerance," Venugopal
said, adding the government
maintained
unfortunate
silence.
"Inaction gave courage to
intolerant forces," he added.
He observed "we must differentiate between tolerant
Hinduism and intolerant
Hindutva."

Wont expel leaders, says Capt

Chandigarh :
State
Congress
chief
Capt
Amarinder Singh today
rejected
Deputy
CM
Sukhbir Badals demand for
action against Congress
leaders who had attended
Sarbat Khalsa. He said the
leaders had participated in
the event purely as devout
Sikhs.
He said Sukhbir should
better mind his own business than meddling in our
party affairs.
Amarinder said Sarbat
Khalsa was a show of
resentment against Badals
failures, particularly inaction in sacrilege incidents.
Stressing that the Sarbat
Khalsa was a religious congregation, he said: By trying to label those who
attended it as Khalistanis,
Sukhbir is hurting the religious sentiments of people
and trying to project an

Plans religious start to new innings

entire community as antinational.

Do you mean that those
who had gone there to
protest the desecration of
Guru Granth Sahib were all
Khalistanis? Do you mean
that every Sikh who raised
his voice against desecration and rightly blamed you
is a Khalistani, questioned
Amarinder. He also questioned the state governments move to bring life

New
Delhi:Newly
appointed Punjab Congress
president Capt Amarinder
Singh will start his fresh
innings by paying obeisance at the Golden
Temple, Durgiana Mandir
and Ram Tirath in his Lok
Sabha constituency of
Amritsar on Wednesday.
Amarinder, who was named
the Punjab Congress chief
convict Devinderpal Singh
Bhullar to Amritsar jail and
to oppose the hanging of
former CM Beant Singhs
assassin Balwant Singh
Rajoana.
invites Partap Bajwa to
Bathinda rally : Amarinder
has invited the outgoing
state Congress president
Partap Bajwa for his

along with Ambika Soni as

the state campaign committee chairperson, will pray
for the political revival of the
Congress in the state. The
visit is aimed at sending a
message of solidarity to all
three communities of
Punjab: Sikhs, Hindus and
Valmikis. Ram Tirath is
associated with Rishi
Valmiki.
Bathinda rally. Confirming
this, Bajwa said: "I have got
a call from Amarinder and I
have accepted his invitation." He said Amarinder
said he would formally take
over as president of the
state Congress in Bathinda.
Besides, Amarinder also
sought his cooperation for
the rally, he said.

HC notice to Tota Singh, CM Badal

Acting on a Public Interest
Litigation (PIL), the Punjab and
Haryana High Court here today
issued notices to Agriculture
Minister Tota Singh, Chief Minister
Parkash Singh Badal and the state
government seeking the Minister's
removal from his post in connection
with an alleged insecticide scandal.
A division bench comprising
Justices S K Mittal and Shekhar
Dhawan issued notices on a PIL
filed by Sukhjeet Singh, a resident
of Moga. The notice is returnable
for January 22. The petitioner
alleged that Tota Singh was con-

victed on May 5, 2012

under Prevention of
Corruption Act, 1988, in a
case pertaining to "misuse" of a car belonging to
the Punjab School
Education Board and
was sentenced to one
year's rigorous imprisonment. Subsequently, his remaining
period of sentence was suspended
by the HC and he was released on
bail. The petitioner's counsel submitted before the bench that Tota
Singh had resigned from cabinet
following his conviction but was

taken back after about a

year and is now a cabinet
minister holding portfolio
of Agriculture. The petitioner further submitted
that recently an alleged
scandal pertaining to purchase of insecticides,
which led to damage to
cotton crop in Punjab, had taken
place in the Agriculture Deaprtment
and one Mangal Singh Sidhu,
Director, along with two other Joint
Directors, has been named
accused and arrested. Impartial
investigation cannot be conducted

in this case by the SIT of Punjab

Police constituted for investigating
this case so long as Tota Singh is a
minister. Thus, investigation into
this scam is required to be conducted by an independent agency like
CBI, the petitioner contended. The
counsel for the petitioner argued
that a Constitution Bench of the
Supreme Court had held in a 2014
case that the PM, as well as CMs,
should avoid taking into cabinet
persons with criminal antecedents,
against whom charges have been
framed, particularly for heinous
offences, including corruption.

10

iNDiaN ECONOMY

December-2015

www.fijisun-usa.com

FIJISUN

India push Dutch, but fall

RaipuR : An inconsistent
India lost 3-1 to the
Netherlands to slump to
their second defeat in the
tournament and finish at
the bottom of Pool B at the
Hockey World League
(HWL) Final here today.
The Netherlands took
the lead in the 36th minute
through a penalty corner
conversion by Mink van
der Weerden before Mirco
Pruijser (43rd) and Roel
Bovendeert (54th) scored
two field goals.
Indias lone goal came
from
the
stick
of
Chinglensana Singh in the
47th minute.
On the eve of the
match, Indias chief coach
Roelant Oltmans had said
that the hosts would have
to do away with their
inconsistent show if they
wanted to progress in
world hockey but his words
had hardly any impact on
his players as they produced another lacklustre
performance to slump to
their second loss in the
eight-nation tournament.
The loss meant India finished at the bottom of Pool
B with just one point from
three matches and will
now take on Pool A toppers in the quarterfinals.
The Netherlands, meanwhile, have topped Pool B
with seven points out of
two wins and a draw and

will play the bottom placed

team of Pool A. By virtue of
this win, the Netherlands
have also managed to
avenge their 3-2 loss
against India during the
pool
matches
of
Champions Trophy in
Bhubaneshwar last year.

After a disappointing tournament opener against

Argentina, India produced
an inspired show to hold
Olympics
champions
Germany to a 1-1 draw
and soon after the match
Oltmans called his wards
to play consistent hockey.

Indonesia Open my next

target, says Sindhu

foot injury early in the

year derailed her plans
but shuttler PV Sindhu
is happy to make a successful
comeback with a good performance at the Denmark Super
Series Premier and a third successive Macau Grand Prix
Gold title.
The
two-time
World
Championships bronze-medallist
finished runners-up at the
Denmark Open, her maiden
Super Series final appearance,
and then clinched her first trophy
of the season at the Macau Open
yesterday. The 20-year-old from
Hyderabad has now set her eyes
on the Indonesia Masters Grand
Prix Gold starting December 1. It
was a great win. I am really
happy for the victory. My immediate target now is Indonesia,
Sindhu said. It was a hat-trick of
titles at Macau and overall it was
a good performance. I could
have finished it off in the second
game but I played two smashes
into the net at crucial moments
and it was very disappointing.
However, in the third game, I took
the lead and maintained it, she
added. Asked about the conditions in the stadium, Sindhu said:
I think judging a shuttle is different everywhere, so there is a drift
but you have to be used to it. We
cant complain as I think it is
same for all. Talking about the

season gone by, Sindhu said:

After coming back from injury, it
has not been that great but I
have been playing well. I m completely fine now. Asked about
the season ahead, Sindhu said:
In January, I am starting with the

IBL and then there are so many

tournaments like the Syed Modi,
Indian Open etc. Also being an
Olympics year, each and every
tournament will be important. I
wish to improve more and perform well.

But the coachs words

seemed to have fallen on
deaf ears as the Indians
were nowhere near the
level they had played at
against Germany the other
day. The Indians had just
36 percent ball possession. The hosts managed

just eight shots at the goal

while the Netherlands had
18 to their credit.
India made a couple of
forays into the opposition
circle in the first quarter but
the strikers failed to make
the most of the opportunities. India had the first

scoring chance in the 11th

minute when Dharamvir
Singhs cross from the
right found Ramandeep
Singh inside the circle but
the strikers feeble push
was easily padded away
by the Netherlands goalkeeper Jaap Stockmann.
Four minutes later,
Thierry Brinkman created
the Netherlands first
chance but his deflection
went over the bar. In the
second
quarter,
the
Netherlands had more
chances than India but
they somehow failed to
convert them into goals.
In the 26th minute,
Valentin Vergas reverse
hit from a tight angle was
off the target before Roel
Bovendeert shot wide
from close range after he
was set up after a fine
combination by Niek van
der Schoot and Jeroen
Hertzberger.
In the final minute of the
opening
half,
VR
Raghunaths
defencesplitting diagonal slap from
the midfield had no takers
as it went on to hit the
board as both the teams
failed to break the deadlock at the halfway mark.
Three minutes into the
second half, India had
another opportunity but
Akashdeep Singh failed to
trap Manpreet Singhs
cross.

Bale, Ronaldo put

Real back on course

eal Madrid got their La

Liga title challenge
back on course
despite an underwhelming
performance as goals from
Gareth Bale and Cristiano
Ronaldo handed them a 2-0
win at Eibar.
In front of a capacity
6,000 crowd at Ipurua,
Madrid did little to dispel the
doubts caused by their 4-0
thrashing by Barcelona last
weekend but Bale's first-half
header and a late penalty
from Ronaldo were enough
for all three points yesterday.
Madrid remain in third, but
victory takes Rafael Benitez's
men back to within six points
of league leaders Barca and
two points of city rivals
Atletico Madrid.
The important thing was
to get the three points and do
so with this spirit of sacrifice,
said Madrid boss Rafael
Benitez. The fans know that
the most important thing
when you have players of
this quality is that they also
work as they did today. That
is the key if we want to continue being strong in the
future. Eibar have enjoyed a
stellar start to just their second season in the top flight,
but as against Barcelona and
Atletico in their only other two
prior defeats this season,

they didn't have enough quality to trouble Madrid in the

final third. After a slow start,
Ronaldo was presented with
a great chance to open the
scoring on 15 minutes from
James Rodriguez's fine
through ball, but he couldn't
lift the ball over the advanc-

ing Asier Riesgo and Mateo

Kovacic wastefully fired the
rebound over. Madrid's pressure told two minutes before
the break when Luka
Modric's brilliant cross was
flicked home at the near post
by Bale for his first goal for
Madrid in three months.

FIjISUN

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PAKISTAN NEWS

December-2015

11

Dr Asim Hussain's police remand extended for seven days

KARACHI: The administrative judge of an anti-terrorism court on Monday
extended
the
police
remand of Dr Asim
Hussain, a former federal
minister and close aide of
former president Asif Ali
Zardari, for seven days in
a case relating to providing
treatment and shelter to
terrorists.
Earlier on Thursday, the
administrative judge of an
anti-terrorism court had
remanded Dr Hussain in
police custody for four
days. The prosecuting
lawyer informed the court
today that another seven
days were required to
complete
the
probe
against Dr Asim Hussain,
following which ATCs
administrative
judge
Justice
Naimatullah
Phulpoto granted the
extension
in
police

remand.A
National
Accountability
Bureau
(NAB) representative had
also requested the court
for the custody of Dr Asim
but since the PPP leader is
already in police remand
the request could not be
entertained. However, the
court allowed NAB officials
access to Dr Asim Hussain
in police custody to complete their own investigations.
Earlier during the day,
Dr Yousuf Sattar recorded
his statement before a
judicial magistrate where
he identified Dr Asim
Hussain as the person
who had passed on the
instructions to provide
treatment, at discount
rates, to terrorists backed
by political parties and militant organisations at
Ziauddin Hospital after
they suffered injuries dur-

ing
shootouts
with
Rangers and police.
Dr Sattar is a close aide
of Dr Hussain and looked
after business of his
healthcare services including North Nazimabad and
Clifton campuses of Dr
Ziauddin Hospital, Dr

Ziauddin Cancer Hospital,

Dr
Ziauddin
Hospital
KDLB, Keamari Campus
and Dr Ziauddin Memorial
Hospital.
PPP leader Dr Asim
Hussain was also present
in the chambers of the civil
court magistrate when Dr

Pak ready to hold talks with India without conditions : Sharif

Valletta (Malta) : Prime
Minister Nawaz Sharif has
said for sustainable peace,
Pakistan is ready for dialogue with India without
conditions, Geo News
reported.
He also said Pakistan
intends to maintain friendly
relations with all its neighbours, including India and
Afghanistan. Sharif stated
this when he met British
Premier David Cameron on
the sidelines of the

Commonwealth Heads of
Government
Meeting
(CHOGM) in the Maltese

capital on Friday.
Both also agreed to continue close collaboration in

Pakistan lodges protest with Bangladesh

ISLAMABAD: The acting
High Commissioner of
Bangladesh was summoned
to the Foreign Office on
Monday to lodge protest on
the statements issued by
Bangladesh
government
recently, an FO statement
said.
Foreign
Office
Spokesperson Syed Qazi
Khalilullah said the acting
Bangladesh
High
Commissioner to Pakistan
was summoned by Director
General (South Asia and
Saarc) and was informed
that Pakistan rejected the
baseless and unfounded
assertions
of
the
Bangladesh
government
conveyed to the Pakistani
envoy in Dhaka earlier on
November 23.
The spokesperson said
Pakistan also rejected insinuation of complicity in committing crimes or war atrocities.
It is regrettable that
attempts have been made
by the Government of
Bangladesh to malign
Pakistan, despite our ardent
desire to develop brotherly
relations with Bangladesh,
said the spokesperson.
He said Pakistan believes
that the peoples of both the
countries not only want to
maintain but also further
strengthen the bonds of
friendship and brotherhood.

However,
sadly,
the
Government of Bangladesh
does not seem to respect
these
sentiments,
the
spokesperson maintained.
The spokesperson said
the
1974
tripartite
Agreement is the bedrock of
relations between the two
countries. He said as
regards the Bangladesh
government's
contention
that Pakistan presents a misleading interpretation of the
Agreement of 1974, it needs
to be emphasised that, as
part of the agreement,
Bangladesh had 'decided
not to proceed with the trials
as an act of clemency.'
Pakistan reiterates its
desire for further enhancing
relations with Bangladesh,
because we believe that the
hearts of the people of
Pakistan beat in unison with
the people of Bangladesh,
said the spokesperson.
Qazi Khalilullah said it is
important for the two coun-

tries not to forget the role

played by their people in the
struggle for the establishment of a separate homeland for the Muslims of the
South Asian sub-continent. It
is, therefore, imperative to
move forward in the spirit of
goodwill, friendship and harmony for the collective good
of the people of Pakistan and
Bangladesh,
said
the
spokesperson.
The Foreign Office on
November 22 had said that,
Pakistan is deeply disturbed
by the executions of the
Bangladesh
Nationalist
Party leader and Jamaat-eIslami secretary general who
were both charged with 1971
war crimes.
Bangladesh Nationalist
Party leader Salahuddin
Quader Chowdhury and
Jamaat-e-Islami secretary
general
Ali
Ahsan
Mohammad Mujahid were
"hanged together, at the
same time" at 12:55 am
(local time) on November 22
at Dhaka Central Jail in the
nation's capital.
The Bangladeshi government
had
summoned
Pakistan's
High
Commissioner Shuja Alam
the next day and lodged
strong protest over the statement made by Foreign
Office, terming it an interference into internal matters of
Bangladesh.

diverse fields, particularly in

trade, investment and
security.
Stating
that
Pakistan condemned terrorism in all its forms and
manifestations and was
deeply saddened by the
recent terrorist attacks in
Paris, Sharif said Pakistan
itself being victim of terrorism could feel the pain of
the French. Cameron lauded Pakistan's efforts in
eradication of militancy and
extremism.

Sattar recorded his statement. Following the end of

his 90-day preventive
detention on November
25, Rangers had handed
Dr Asim over to police on
Wednesday night after
lodging a case against him
for allegedly treating and
harbouring terrorists at
North Nazimabad and
Clifton branches of his
hospital at the behest of
leaders of the Muttahida
Qaumi Movement and the
PPP. The anti-terrorism
court on Thursday had
remanded Dr Hussain in
police custody for four
days.
During the court proceedings, a conflict arose
between the Sindh prosecutor general and the
Rangers prosecutor over
the period of remand of Dr
Asim, Dawn newspaper
reported. The Rangers

prosecutor opposed the

four-day detention, saying
Rangers had asked for a
14-day detention in the
remand paper submitted in
the court, but the Sindh PG
had crossed it out and
asked for a four-day detention instead.
Rangers picked up Dr
Asim Hussain, the incumbent chairman of the Sindh
Higher
Education
Commission with the status of a provincial minister,
on Aug 26 from his office in
Clifton. The following day
Rangers informed an antiterrorism court that he was
placed under a threemonth preventive detention for inquiry as per
Section 11-EEEE of ATA
since they had credible
information about his
involvement
in
using
embezzled
funds
to
finance terrorism.

Sikh pilgrims return home

LAHORE: A number of Sikh pilgrims on Sunday returned
home, urging governments of
both India and Pakistan to end
all sorts of visa restriction by
opening borders for pilgrims in
particular and the public in general. Over 2,500 Sikh pilgrims,
who had arrived in Lahore
(Pakistan) on Nov 20 for a 10day tour to participate in the
547th birth anniversary of Baba
Gurunanak in Nankana Sahib

district, returned India by three

special trains. Before departure,
they appreciated the Pakistan
government for facilitating them.
We desire that Pakistan end
visa restrictions for pilgrims,
enabling us to visit temples of
our gurus. And India too should
end visa restrictions for Pakistani
devotees, deputy group leader
Sardar Gurbachan Singh said
while talking to media at the
Lahore Railway Station.

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Unofficial results pour in, PTI dominates Islamabad

ISLAMABAD: With the
unofficial results start
pouring
in,
Pakistan
Tehreek-e-Insaf
(PTI)
seems to be taking the
lead with the partys candidates winning at six wards
in Islamabads Union
Council-40, DawnNews
reported on Monday.
As it was being anticipated, a large number of
independent candidates
also won with the PMLN trailing behind the PTI.
The Pakistan Peoples
Party (PPP), however, was
nowhere in the competition.Apart from sweeping
the polls in UC-40, PTI

secured chairman seats

from UC-50, UC-36 and
UC 27 while in UC-30, PTI
won all seats except that of
chairman.
PML-N has secured
chairman seats in UC-43,
UC-41, UC-33 and UC-32
so far, according to the
unofficial and unconfirmed
results. Voting concluded
peacefully in the federal
capital on Monday amid
low voter turnout and high
security as residents of the
federal capital went to the
polls to elect local representatives for the first time
under the newly-minted
Islamabad
Local

Government Act, 2015.

The last local body polls
in lslamabad were held
under military rule in 1979
on a non-party basis and
was limited to rural areas

only. Islamabad, which

now has a population of
around 2 million, has been
divided into 50 Union
Councils for the polls. As
many as 676,795 regis-

tered voters will be electing local councillors and

UC chairpersons and vicechairpersons, who will go
on to sit in the Islamabad
Metropolitan Corporation
(IMC), Dawn Newspaper
reported.
According to the ECP,
2,407 candidates are taking parts in these elections. There are 972 independents, 506 of PML-N,
479 of PTI, 164 of Jamaati-Islami and 81 of the PPP.
The ECP had set up a
control room to register
voter complains. The control room can be contacted
at 051-9210816, 9210817,

and 9210818. All government departments, including federal ministries in

Islamabad
Capital
Territory, shut at 2:00pm
this afternoon to enable
government employees to
cast their votes. The start
of voting at certain polling
stations was delayed as
polling materials reached
the
stations
late,
DawnNews had reported.
Other reasons reported for
the delay in polling are a
lack of training provided on
how to vote, misprinting of
candidate's symbols on
ballot papers and provision
of dry stamp pads.

Raheel signs death warrants PM Nawaz urges stakeholders to remain

for killers of Peshawar
committed to Afghan peace process
school children
Pakistan Army Chief
Gen Raheel Sharif on
Monday signed death
warrants of four militants
convicted by military
courts for involvement in
the deadly attack at an
army-run
school
in
north-western city of
Peshawar in December.
The mercy appeals of
Maulvi Abdus Salam,
Hazrat Ali, Mujeebur
Rehman and Sabeel
alias Yahya were rejected by the President of
Pakistan on November
20. Gen, Sharif signed
the black warrants of the

four convicts, who were

sentenced to death by
special military court
established after the
school attack for speedy
trial of militants, the
Army said in a statement.

Now, no legal bar on hanging

After the signing of death
warrants, there is no legal
bar on the hangings of the
convicts. Pakistan lifted
moratorium on the penalties in the country after
December 16 attack at the

army-run school which

killed at least 150 people,
mostly students. So far
about 300 convicts have
been hanged in the country,
upsetting local and international human rights groups.

PARIS: Prime Minister

Nawaz Sharif stressed the
need for all stakeholders to
remain committed to the
promotion of peace and
stability in Afghanistan,
notwithstanding the obstacles and impediments in
the pursuit of this objective. He said this during
exchange of views with
Afghan President Ashraf
Ghani and Britains Prime
Minister David Cameron in
a tripartite meeting on the
sidelines
of
Climate
Conference in Paris.
The prime minister also
assured the leaders of
Afghanistan and United
Kingdom of his government's strong resolve and
commitment to ensure that
the Pakistani soil is not
used for terrorism anywhere.
In this context, he
apprised the two leaders of
the successes achieved
during the course of the
past year and half in the
military operation Zarb-iAzb launched against
all militants and terrorists

without any discrimination.

Nawaz told the Afghan
president that a warm welcome awaits him in
Islamabad at the Heart of
Asia
Meeting
on
December 8, 2015.
The British prime minister spoke of his great
admiration for Nawaz and
Ghani and lauded their
strong commitment to work
closely for the common
objective of peace and stability in Afghanistan.
He assured both lead-

Qaim increases job quota for women by 2pc in Sindh

KARACHI: Sindh Chief
Minister Syed Qaim Ali
Shah
announced
to
increase the quota of
women in government jobs
from 5 per cent to 7 per
cent with immediate effect.
Qaim took this decision
while presiding over a
meeting
of
Women
Development Department
(WDD) at CM House on
Monday. The Sindh chief
minister directed the chief
secretary to implement it
strictly and with immediate
effect.
"It was the dream and
mission of Benazir Bhutto
to empower women and
the incumbent provincial
government is committed
to fulfil this in letter and in
spirit," the CM said.
The chief minister was
of the view that the current
quota of women, which is 5

Women's hostel occupied by police

Upon hearing from WDD
Secretary Aijaz Mangi that
his department had constructed a `working women
hostel' in Shaheed
Benazirabad at the cost of
Rs13.2 million but the police
occupied it, the chief minister
expressed displeasure and
per cent, is not enough and
at least 7 per cent women
must become a part of
provincial bureaucracy.
Qaim also announced that
all the vacant positions in
WDD, must be filled by
women only. The application of male candidate
would not be entertained in
WDD," he directed the
chief secretary and secretary Labour.

directed his Principal

Secretary Alamuddin Bullo to
vacate the hostel and report
to him. "The hostel is meant
for working women only, it
must be returned and be
used for the purpose for
which it has been built," he
said.

107 sexual harassment cases registered

Mangi told Qaim that
under Protection Against
Harassment of Women at
Workplace Act 2010 some
107 cases have been registered
throughout
the
province, of them 887 have
been solved so far.
Talking about Domestic
Violence (Prevention and

Protection) Act 2013, the

secretary said that rules
have been prepared in consultation with the stakeholders and submitted to law
department for vetting.
Once the rules are approved
by the chief minister, the Act
would be implemented properly, he assured.

ers that the UK would

remain available with its
support and assistance in
their common endeavor to
promote the reconciliation
process in Afghanistan.
Earlier, Nawaz said
Pakistan wants cordial
relations based on bilateral
cooperation
with
Afghanistan.
Talking to President
Ghani on the sidelines of
World Climate Change
Conference in Paris on
Monday, he said Pakistan

is committed to work with

Afghanistan as an equal
and sovereign state.
The prime minister said
peace and stability in
Afghanistan is the key goal
and Pakistan is committed
to build a long term partnership with its neighbors.
He said a stable
Afghanistan is in the best
interest of the entire
region. Nawaz vowed to
work with Afghanistan to
improve regional economic
connectivity. He said we
are ready to take concrete
steps to improve these
links for the benefit of the
two countries.
Speaking on the occasion,
Ghani
said
Afghanistan also wants to
develop peaceful, friendly
and cooperative relations
with Pakistan. The two
leaders agreed to increase
economic and trade cooperation, which is an area of
shared interest between
both the countries.They
also discussed resumption
of peace and reconciliation
process in Afghanistan.

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gallery

December-2015

13

mary CHriStmaS aNd HaPPy NeW year

By Sat NarayaN aNd family

gallery

14

miscellaneous

December-2015

you with yourfavourite music, and they

also say
lotabout
headphones
wereacreated
by
in the
Baldwin,
a professor,
your style. We test headphonesall theNathaniel
time, and
these
six
day but he didnt patent his invention
web www.mid-day.com,
@mid_day
modelstwitter
have
stood out as excellent options.

sunday, november 29, 2015, mumbai,

Easy
listening

The higher end

Theres a right
headphone for
every one

Headphones
Of Desire
These cans sound great, but may
burn a hole in your pocket

HEADPHONES are a very personal

thing. They engulf you with your
favourite music, and they also say a lot
about your style. We test headphones
all the time, and these six models have
stood out as excellent options. From
the huge yet brilliant Audeze EL-8 to
the isolating, comfortable B&W P5
Wireless, theres a set of headphones
here for everyone; whether you want
to listen in your front room, in the
office or on the bus into town.

PHILIPS FIDELIO M2L

These have a built-in DAC
and plug directly into the
lightning port on your
iPhone, iPad or iPod. This
does mean you won't be
able to use the headphones
with another device,
though.
`20,000, philips.co.in

GRADO PS500E
Handmade in Brooklyn, NYC,
these open-backed
(meaning theyll leak sound)
on-ear headphones are
subtle yet bright, and have
an excellent soundstage.
Theyre also comfortable,
and they look ace.
`60,000, gradolabs.com

FIJISUN

Headphones are a very personalthing.

engulf
first working
back In 1910, theThey

tech
technology
21

www.fijisun-usa.com

ABYSS AB-1266 DELUXE

Yes, these almost Medievallooking cans really do cost
this much. So what do you
get for the same price as a
small car? All the
components are made from
solid aluminium, while
planarmagnetic tech
contributes to a sound that
will delight even the most
dedicated of audiophiles.
R4,00,000, abyssheadphones.com

3
AUDEZE EL-8
With their wooden veneers
and brushed- metal ear
cups, these look and
sound the bees knees.
Planarmagnetic tech makes
them easily driven by
mobile devices, and they
feature rich bass.
`49,990, audeze.com

4
B&O PLAY H6
Probably the most stylish
cans here, the H6s are a
relatively neutralsounding
set of headphones. We
adore the premium
lambskin ear ups and
leather headband, and rate
the choice of colours.
`32,500, beoplay.com

2
ULTRASONE EDITION 5
Each ear cup on these
beauties is made from moor
oak which Ultrasone says
is hundreds of years old and
unrivalled in terms of
colour. The ear cups are
made from Ethiopian sheep
leather! If its quality
materials and sound you're
after, look no further.
R3,00,000,
ultrasoneheadphones.
com

5
MUSICAL FIDELITY
MF-200B
Built to work with the V90BHA headphone amp, these
can be picked up in an amp
for `45,000. Pretty
neutral-sounding
and impressive.
`25,000, musicalfidelity.
com

3
MCINTOSH MHP1000
McIntosh says its MHP1000
cans have a smooth, fullbodied, non-fatiguing
response enabling you to
hear new facets of your
favourite songs. They're
also supercomfortable, with
premium leather ear pads
for extended listening. Add
a McIntosh headphone amp
to make them even better.
R2,00,000, mcintoshlabs.
com

6
BOWERS & WILKINS P5
WIRELESS
The P5s are a great set of
cans, and the fact that
theyre wireless adds
convenience to the mix. The
best Bluetooth phones on
the market.
`33,000, bowers-wilkins.
com

How Headphones Changed the World

f you are reading this
on a computer, there
is an excellent chance
that you are wearing, or
within arm's reach of, a
pair of headphones or
earbuds.
To visit a modern office
place is to walk into a
room with a dozen songs
playing simultaneously
but to hear none of them.
Up to half of younger
workers listen to music on
their headphones, and the

vast majority thinks it

makes us better at our
jobs. In survey after survey, we report with confidence that music makes
us happier, better at concentrating, and more productive.
Science says we're full
of it. Listening to music
hurts our ability to recall
other stimuli, and any pop
song -- loud or soft -reduces overall performance for both extraverts

and
introverts.
A
Taiwanese study linked
music with lyrics to lower
scores on concentration
tests for college students,
and other research have
shown music with words
scrambles our brains' verbal-processing skills. "As
silence had the best overall performance it would
still be advisable that people work in silence," one
report dryly concluded.
If headphones are so

bad for productivity, why

do so many people at
work have headphones?
There is an economic
answer:
The
United
States has moved from a
farming/manufacturing
economy to a service
economy, and more jobs
"demand higher levels of
concentration, reflection
and creativity." This leads
to a logistical answer:
With 70 percent of office
workers in cubicles or

open work spaces, it's

t
more important to create
one's own cocoonb of
sound. That brings us to a
psychological
answer:
There is evidence that
music relaxes our muscles, improves our mood,
and can even moderately
reduce blood pressure,
heart rate, and anxiety.
What music steals in
acute concentration, it
returns to us in the form of
good vibes. That brings

us finally to our final cultural

answer:
Headphones give us
absolute control over our
audio-environment, allowing us to privatize our
public spaces. This is an
important development
for dense office environments in a service economy. But it also represents
nothing less than a fundamental shift in humans'
basic relationship to
music.

FIJISUN

www.fijisun-usa.com

December-2015

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SAT & SUN

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Chef/Owner

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website : www.moonindiancuisine.net

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December-2015

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December-2015

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December-2015

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Grandson Amaan Koya

%

Keeps fAmily trAditioN

WiNs Gold AWArd iN eNGlish At
school iN sydNey, AustrAliA

Amaan is younger son of

my eldest son Nasir Koya.
(

7 0,*+7

+!(* !/%,$.!

1!'-- #-+

<($56B (;3(5,

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Around the world

December-2015

21

Cops rush to screams Now thats a

hot
potato
of spider-chasing man
Sydney Police respond to reports
of man shouting threats and
furniture being thrown only
to find him scared of spiders
SYDNEY: An Australian man
freaked out so much about a
spider in his house that his
concerned and scared neighbours alerted the cops as they
thought he was murdering a
woman.
The
residents
of
Wollstonecraft locality in
Sydney called the police at 2
am on Saturday after they
heard screams and noises of
furniture being thrown and a
man shouting loudly. The man
was heard bellowing, Im
going to kill you, youre dead!
Die! Die! Neighbours feared
that he was attacking and trying to kill a woman possibly
his girlfriend or wife.
After the call, several patrol
cars reached the area, where
the cops found a visibly-disturbed man, who was angry at
an arachnid that had entered
his property.

30%
Americans suffer
from arachnophobia

A report by the New

South Wales Police Force
Harbourside Local Area
Command said officers asked
him where his wife or girlfriend was, but he said he
didnt have one and
that he lived alone.
When
the
police asked him
about the noises,
he
answered
sheepishly, admitting hed been
The man was heard
chasing a spider. It
was a spider, a really big one!
bellowing, Im
he said. The officer, then, asked
going to kill you.
him about a womans wail.
ILLUSTRATION/
Yeah sorry, that was me, I
THINKSTOCK
really really hate spiders, he
replied. After a very long
pause, some laughter and a
quick look in the unit to make
sure there was no injured party Australia has a reputation for being home to some of the
we left, the report quotes the worlds most dangerous spiders including the funnel-web
police as saying.
and redback

did you know?

Santa Claus wanted

after stealing chopper

A farmer pulled a sweet potato out of

the ground at his farm last week and was
surprised to find it in shape of a ladys
legs and bottom in a suggestive pose
LONDON: A farmer from
Kent County in South East
England was astonished by
the raunchy shape of one of
his
home-grown
sweet
potatos, which he and his
family later refused to eat.
The hot sweet potato
looks like the lower half of a
womans body, with a rather
shapely behind bending over
in a provocative pose.
Last week, Ben Fletch
pulled the veggie out of the
ground and couldnt believe
his eyes when he saw the
frisky tatty.
He told local media, It
was hilarious. Obviously it
looks like a lady bending over.
It did make me chuckle. I
showed my family and they Ben Fletch, the farmer
loved it we were all laugh- potato that I grew in my priing for quite a while.
vate field. It is only recently
that we were able to grow
Too hot to handle
sweet potatoes here in the UK
Fletchs discovery was too hot so its very cool for me. We
to handle, as he refused to threw it away though as [we]
take a bite of his astonishing didnt want to have to cook it.
AGENCIES
find. He said, Its a sweet

It was hilarious.
Obviously it looks
like a lady bending
over. It did make
me chuckle. I
showed my family
and they loved
it we were all
laughing for quite
a while

A THOUSAND AND ONE WORDS

Brazilian cops are on the look out for a man dressed as Santa
Claus, who flew away with the chopper after tying up the pilot
The man ordered the
pilot to take him to a
farm outside the city,
where he met his
accomplice
The duo then, tied
the pilot and flew off
with the chopper
A manhunt has been
launched for the
criminals
SAO PAULO: The Brazilian
Police have launched a peculiar manhunt after a man clad
in a red and white Santa Claus
outfit took off with a chopper.
The fugitive rented the aircraft on Friday from an
air-taxi service at the Campo
Marte airport in Sao Paulo,

The Santa Claus

rented the aircraft
from an air-taxi
service and told
the pilot that
he wished to
participate in
the Black Friday
celebrations.
PIC FOR
REPRESENTATION/
THINKSTOCK

Brazil. He told the pilot that

he wished to participate in the
Black Friday celebrations.
However, his cunning plot
came to fore when the plane
was airborne.
The accused directed the
pilot to fly to a small farm
outside the city. The hostage
pilot complied with the
orders. Upon reaching the
instructed destination, a third

man arrived, and he and the

Santa Claus impersonator tied
up the pilot. The duo got back
in the helicopter and flew off.
The
pilot,
however,
managed to escape after a few
hours and alerted the police,
who immediately a manhunt
for the fugitives. So far, no
signs of the copter a
Robinson model 44 have
been found.

US woman wins 1 million dollars for second time!

onstance
Carpenito, of
Stoneham,
recently won a USD 1
million prize on a
scratch ticket in the
USD 10,000,000
Diamond Millionaire
instant game. A
spokesman for the
Massachusetts Lottery

says Carpenito also

won USD 1 million on
a scratch ticket back
in 1996. Both tickets
were purchased at
the same Stop and
Shop supermarket on
Main Street in her
hometown. If that isnt
enough, she also
once bought a USD

20,000 winning ticket

at the store.
Carpenito says she
plays USD 20 in lottery tickets every
week. She plans to
put her most recent
winnings toward a
very special
Christmas for her
family.

Goat
must be
crazy!

People look at fireworks at the inauguration of the Gvle Goat in Sweden. It is a giant
goat figure made of straw, and is erected each year at the beginning of Advent. The
goat has been burned 26 times since 1966. Watching Gvles Goat has become a
national pastime in Sweden, where people monitor the goat throughout December
with baited breath to see if it will survive. PIC/AFP

Woman faces 10 years in jail for

giving water to thirsty pigs

waiting for passing pig trucks.

When the trucks stopped,
she fed them water through
gaps in the lorry. The truck
TORONTO: A woman who fed Milton charged her with crim- driver asked her to stop giving
the pigs water. The next day
water to pigs in a lorry faces jail inal mischief .
Anita Krajnc was standing police informed her there had
after being accused of criminal
mischief . Yesterday, a court in by the roadside in Canada, been a complaint against her.

22

HINDUISM

December-2015

www.fijisun-usa.com

FIJISUN

HERE YOU WILL BE PRESENTED TRANSCENDENTAL KNOWLEDGE OF THE MOST PROFOUND SPIRITUAL NATURE AS REVEALED IN
THE BHAGAVAD- GITA. IT IS THE DIVINE DISCOURSE SPOKEN BY THE SUPREME LORD KRISHNA HIMSELF AND IS THE MOST POPULAR AND WELL KNOWN OF ALL THE
SACRED SCRIPTURES FROM ANCIENT INDIA. ALWAYS BEING REVERED AS A TRUE SOURCE OF SPIRITUAL KNOWLEDGE IT REVEALS THE PURPOSE AND GOAL OF HUMAN
EXISTENCE. IN CONJUNCTION TO THIS WE WILL BE PRESENTING PRECISE VEDIC VERIFICATION OF THE SUPREME LORD KRISHNA'S DIVINE INCARNATIONS AS EVIDENCE
CONFIRMING HIS SUPREME POSITION. IN BHAGAVAD- GITA, CHAPTER 10, VERSE 20, THE SUPREME LORD REVEALS THAT HE MANIFESTS AS THE IMMORTAL SOUL
WITHIN EACH AND EVERY LIVING ENTITY. NO WHERE ELSE WITHIN ANY OTHER RELIGIOUS SCRIPTURE IS THIS INFORMATION AVAILABLE. OUR PURPOSE IS TO MAKE
THE ETERNAL KNOWLEDGE OF BHAGAVAD- GITA FREELY AVAILABLE TO EVERYONE ALL OVER THE EARTH. PART-3
CONTINUES frOM JUly ISSUE

bove these modes

there is eternal
time, and by a combination of these modes of
nature and under the control and purview of eternal
time there are activities,
which are called karma.
These activities are being
carried out from time immemorial, and we are suffering
or enjoying the fruits of our
activities. For instance,
suppose I am a businessman and have worked very
hard with intelligence and
have amassed a great
bank balance. Then I am
an enjoyer. But then say I
have lost all my money in
business; then I am a sufferer. Similarly, in every
field of life we enjoy the
results of our work, or we
suffer the results. This is
called karma.
Ishvara (the Supreme
Lord), jiva (the living entity),
prakriti (nature), kala (eternal time) and karma (activity) are all explained in the
Bhagavad-gita. Out of
these five, the Lord, the living entities, material nature
and time are eternal. The
manifestation of prakriti
may be temporary, but it is
not false. Some philosophers say that the manifestation of material nature is
false, but according to the
philosophy of Bhagavadgita or according to the philosophy of the Vaishnavas,
this is not so. The manifestation of the world is not
accepted as false; it is
accepted as real, but temporary. It is likened unto a
cloud which moves across
the sky, or the coming of
the rainy season, which
nourishes grains. As soon
as the rainy season is over
and as soon as the cloud
goes away, all the crops
which were nourished by
the rain dry up. Similarly,
this material manifestation
takes place at a certain
interval, stays for a while
and then disappears. Such
are the workings of prakriti.
But this cycle is working
eternally. Therefore prakriti
is eternal; it is not false. The
Lord refers to this as My
prakriti. This material
nature is the separated
energy of the Supreme
Lord, and similarly the living
entities are also the energy
of the Supreme Lord,
although they are not separated but eternally related.
So the Lord, the living entity, material nature and time
are all interrelated and are
all eternal. However, the
other item, karma, is not
eternal. The effects of
karma may be very old
indeed. We are suffering or
enjoying the results of our
activities from time immemorial, but we can change
the results of our karma, or

our activity, and this change

depends on the perfection
of our knowledge. We are
engaged in various activities. Undoubtedly we do
not know what sort of activities we should adopt to
gain relief from the actions
and reactions of all these
activities, but this is also
explained in the Bhagavadgita.
The position of ishvara,
the Supreme Lord, is that of

living entity, is also

supremely conscious. The
living being cannot be
supremely conscious at
any stage of his perfection,
and the theory that he can
be so is a misleading theory. Conscious he may be,
but he is not perfectly or
supremely conscious.
The distinction between
the jiva and the ishvara will
be explained in the
Thirteenth Chapter of

forgets what to do. First of

all he makes a determination to act in a certain way,
and then he is entangled in
the actions and reactions of
his own karma. After giving
up one type of body, he
enters another type of
body, as we put on and
take off clothes. As the soul
thus migrates, he suffers
the actions and reactions of
his past activities. These
activities can be changed
when the living being is in

generated by the association of matter. That is a mistaken idea. The theory that
consciousness develops
under certain circumstances of material combination is not accepted in
the
Bhagavad-gita.
Consciousness may be
pervertedly reflected by the
covering of material circumstances, just as light reflected through colored glass
may appear to be a certain
color, but the consciousness of the Lord is not
materially affected. Lord
Krishna says, mayadhyaksena prakritih [Bg. 9.10].
When He descends into the

the mode of goodness, in

sanity, and understands
what sort of activities he
should adopt. If he does so,
then all the actions and
reactions of his past activities can be changed.
Consequently, karma is not
eternal. Therefore we stated that of the five items
(ishvara, jiva, prakriti, time
and karma) four are eternal, whereas karma is not
eternal.
The supreme conscious
ishvara is similar to the living entity in this way: both
the consciousness of the
Lord and that of the living
entity are transcendental. It
is not that consciousness is

material universe, His consciousness is not materially

affected. If He were so
affected, He would be unfit
to speak on transcendental
matters as He does in the
Bhagavad-gita.
One cannot say anything about the transcendental world without being
free from materially contaminated consciousness.
So the Lord is not materially contaminated. Our consciousness, at the present
moment, however, is materially contaminated. The
Bhagavad-gita teaches that
we have to purify this materially contaminated consciousness. In pure con-

Srimad
Bhagavad

Gita

GEETA SAYS

THE SUPREME CONSCIOUS ISHVARA IS SIMILAR TO THE LIVING ENTITY IN THIS WAY: BOTH
THE CONSCIOUSNESS
OF THE LORD AND THAT
OF THE LIVING ENTITY
ARE TRANSCENDENTAL.
IT IS NOT THAT CONSCIOUSNESS IS GENERATED BY THE ASSOCIATION OF MATTER. THAT
IS A MISTAKEN IDEA. THE
THEORY THAT CONSCIOUSNESS DEVELOPS
UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES OF MATERIAL
COMBINATION IS NOT
ACCEPTED IN THE
BHAGAVAD-GITA.

supreme consciousness.
The jivas, or the living entities, being parts and
parcels of the Supreme
Lord, are also conscious.
Both the living entity and
material
nature
are
explained as prakriti, the
energy of the Supreme
Lord, but one of the two,
the jiva, is conscious. The
other prakriti is not conscious. That is the difference. Therefore the jivaprakriti is called superior
because the jiva has consciousness which is similar
to the Lords. The Lords is
supreme consciousness,
however, and one should
not claim that the jiva, the

Bhagavad-gita. The Lord is

kshetra-jna, conscious, as
is the living being, but the
living being is conscious of
his particular body, whereas the Lord is conscious of
all bodies. Because He
lives in the heart of every
living being, He is conscious of the psychic movements of the particular
jivas. We should not forget
this. It is also explained that
the
Paramatma,
the
Supreme Personality of
Godhead, is living in everyones heart as ishvara, as
the controller, and that He
is giving directions for the
living entity to act as he
desires. The living entity

sciousness, our actions will

be dovetailed to the will of
ishvara, and that will make
us happy. It is not that we
have to cease all activities.
Rather, our activities are to
be purified, and purified
activities are called bhakti.
Activities
in
bhakti
appear to be like ordinary
activities, but they are not
contaminated. An ignorant
person may see that a
devotee is acting or working like an ordinary man,
but such a person with a
poor fund of knowledge
does not know that the
activities of the devotee or
of the Lord are not contaminated by impure consciousness or matter. They
are transcendental to the
three modes of nature. We
should know, however, that
at this point our consciousness is contaminated.
When we are materially
contaminated, we are
called conditioned. False
consciousness is exhibited
under the impression that I
am a product of material
nature. This is called false
ego. One who is absorbed
in the thought of bodily conceptions cannot understand
his
situation.
Bhagavad-gita was spoken
to liberate one from the
bodily conception of life,
and Arjuna put himself in
this position in order to
receive this information
from the Lord. One must
become free from the bodily conception of life; that is
the preliminary activity for
the transcendentalist. One
who wants to become free,
who wants to become liberated, must first of all learn
that he is not this material
body. Mukti, or liberation,
means freedom from material consciousness. In the
Srimad-Bhagavatam also
the definition of liberation is
given. Muktir hitvanyatharupam
svarupena
vyavasthitih: mukti means
liberation from the contaminated consciousness of
this material world and situation in pure consciousness.
All the instructions of
Bhagavad-gita are intended to awaken this pure consciousness, and therefore
we find at the last stage of
the Gitas instructions that
Krishna is asking Arjuna
whether he is now in purified
consciousness.
Purified
consciousness
means acting in accordance with the instructions
of the Lord. This is the
whole sum and substance
of purified consciousness.
Consciousness is already
there because we are part
and parcel of the Lord, but
for us there is the affinity of
being affected by the inferior modes. But the Lord,
CONTINUES IN NEXT ISSUE

FIJISUN

banglaDesh news

www.fijisun-usa.com

3 to die for killing Sylhet schoolboy

A tribunal here on
Monday sentenced three
people to death for killing
nine-year-old schoolboy
Abu Sayeed after abduction in the city on March
14.
The three condemned
convicts are suspended
police constable Ebadur
Rahman alias Putul, 24, of
Airport Police Station,
Abdur Rakib, 26, general
secretary of the district
Olama League, and Ataur
Rahman Geda, 33 a police
informant. The court also
fined them TK 20,000
each.
Judge of Women and
Children
Repression
Prevention Tribunal Abdur
Rashid pronounced the
verdict acquitting Mahib
Hossain Masum, publicity

secretary of the Sylhet district unit of Olama League.

Earlier on November
17, the court framed
charges against four people in the case. Of them,
Masum,
who
had
remained absconding, surrendered before the court
on November 10.
On 14 March, police
recovered the body of Abu
Sayeed, a fourth grader of
Shahi Eidgah Hazrat Shahi
Mir Govt Primary School
who had been abducted on
March 11, from the house
of police constable Ebadur
at Jharnapar in the city.
Police arrested constable Ebadur Rahman, Rakib
and Geda in connection
with the killing.
The arrestees were
then interrogated at the

police station where they

reportedly confessed to
killing the schoolboy.
Constable
Ebadur
Rahman made a confessional statement under
Section 164 before Judge
Shahedul Karim of Sylhet
Metropolitan Magistrates
Court-1.
Abdul Matin, victims
father, filed a murder case
against the arrestees and
three other unidentified
people.
Later, members of
Rapid Action Battalion
(Rab)-9 detected where
the body was hidden
through mobile phone
tracking and conducted a
raid on the house of
Ebadur. They found the
body wrapped in seven
sacks.unb

December-2015

23

2 robbers killed in
gunfight in Bagerhat
Two suspected forest robbers were killed in a gunfight
with members of Rapid Action
Battalion (Rab) in Urubaria Khal
area under Chandpai Range of
the Sundarbans East Zone in
Mongla upazila of Bagerhat district on Monday morning.
The deceased were identified as Monir Khalifa, 32, chief
of the forest robbers gang
Monir Bahini and his deputy
commander Nur Mohammad
alias Bhola Mama, 37, both residents of Morrelganj upazila in
Bagerhat district.
Barisal Rab-8 commanding
officer Lt Col Faridul Alam said
on a tip-off that the forest robber
gang was taking preparation to
commit robbery in the area, a
team of the elite force launched

a drive there at about 7:30 am.

Sensing the presence of the
Rab members, the forest robbers opened fire at them, forcing
them to fire back that triggered a
gunfight. Several gunshots were
traded during the 40-minute gun
battle.
Later, as the robbers disappeared into deep forest the elite
force members noticed the bodies of Monir and Bhola Mama
lying there and recovered those.
They also recovered 18
firearms, 350 rounds of bullets
and some sharp weapons from
the spot, added our Bagerhat
correspondent The deceased
Monir and Bhola Mama were
wanted in several cases including for robbery, Lt Col Faridul
added.

Niko
graft
case
:
Khaleda
gets
bail
11 to die for killing Jubo League leader
A Gazipur court gave
death sentence to 11
people for killing Jubo
League leader Jalal
Uddin Sarkar in Gazipur
a decade ago.
Additional District and
Sessions Judge Md.
Fazle Elahi Bhuiyan
handed down the verdict
of the case on Monday.
Apart from the death
sentence, the convicts
were asked to pay Tk. 10
thousand as fines.

Among the 11 who got

the highest judicial punishment, 6 were present

in court during the verdict.

Farhad
Sarkar,
Belayat Hossain Biltu,
Faruk Hossen, Ataur
Rahman, Joynal Abedin
and Ahmad Ali, the six
convicts were present in
court during the order.
Joj Miya, Alamin,
Mahbubur Rahman, Ahim
Fakir and Jwel, the other
criminals have been
absconding since the
start of the case.

A Dhaka court on
Monday granted bail to
BNP
Chairperson
Khaleda Zia on surrender
in Niko graft case.
Judge Md Aminul Islam
of the Special Judges
Court-9 passed the order
after she surrendered
before the court around
12:20pm seeking bail.
The case is awaiting
charge framing at a
Dhaka special judges'
court. Earlier, on the 18th
June, the Hugh Court
ordered
Khaleda
to
appear before a trial
court, after rejecting her

petition challenging legality of the case.

The High Court also
withdrew a stay order
imposed on the case.
The
Anti-Corruption
Commission filed the
case on 9th December in
2007 at Tejgaon Police
Station accusing Khaleda
and several others.
The case records say
that Khaleda and the
other accused awarded a
gas
exploration
and
extraction deal to the
Canadian company during the BNP-led government's tenure.

For all travel

destinations
anywhere in the

world
call : 1-800-771-2925
David Maharaj: 310-644-9004

24

BANGLADESH NEWS

December-2015

www.fijisun-usa.com

FIJISUN

24 awarded death penalty in 5 cases

A total of 24 people were
yesterday sentenced to
death in 6 cases filed over
murders at different places
of the country. In Gazipur,
11 people were sentenced
to death by a court for
killing a Juba League
leader in Kapasia upazila in
2003. The condemned convicts are Faruque, Belayet
Hossain Beltu, Abdus Alim,
Ataur Rahman, Farhad,
Joynal, Joj Miah, Halim,
Ripon, Jewel and Anar
Miah. Some of them were
activists of Juba League
and Chhatra League.
Judge of additional district
judge court-1 Fazle Elahi
Bhuiyan handed down the
verdict yesterday.
Jalal Sarker, 32, Jubo
League Kapasia upazila
unit president, was hacked
to death near Ballkhela
Bazar area of the upazila
on August 17, 2003 following political rivalry, said the
prosecution. Victims brother Milon Sarkar filed a case
with Kapasia Police Station
in connection with the murder on August 18, 2003.
In Sylhet, three people
have been sentenced to

death by a court for killing

nine-year-old schoolboy
Abu Sayeed after abduction in the city on March 14.
The three condemned convicts are suspended police
constable Ebadur Rahman
alias Putul, 24, of Airport
Police
Station, Abdur
Rakib, 26, general secretary of the district Olama
League, and Ataur Rahman
Geda, 33 a police informant.
Judge of Women and
Children
Repression
Prevention Tribunal Abdur
Rashid pronounced the
verdict acquitting another
accused Mahib Hossain
Masum, publicity secretary
of the Sylhet district unit of
Olama League. On 14
March, police recovered
the body of Abu Sayeed
from the house of police
constable
Ebadur
at
Jharnapar in the city.
Sayeed, a fourth grader of
Shahi Eidgah Hazrat Shahi
Mir Govt Primary School
was abducted on March 11.
Constable
Ebadur
Rahman later made a confessional statement under
Section 164 before Judge

Shahedul Karim of Sylhet

Metropolitan Magistrates
Court-1. Meanwhile, a
Narayanganj court sentenced four people to death
yesterday for schoolboy
Emon murder case filed in
2013.
Additional district and
sessions judges of special
tribunal-1 Miaji Mohammad
Shahdiul Islam pronounced
the verdict.
Emon Hossain, a classVI student of Kanainagar
High School and son of
Ismail Hossain of Char
Radhanagar village in
Fatulla of Sadar upazila,
went missing on June 13,
2013.
Later, police recovered
the body of the schoolboy
sliced into nine pieces from
a field, half a km away from
his house, on June 22.
Ten accused gave confessional statements to a
court under section 164.
On July 21 2013, Nahid
described the brutality
before the journalists at a
press briefing at the office
of the police super.
Nahid, also a cousin of
Emon, had said he along

with six people, including

Siraj and Salma, took the
schoolchild to the field near
his house on June 13 after
making him unconscious
with sedatives. Later, they
cut him into nine pieces
and left the place by dumping the body here. Iqbal,
elder brother of Emon, and
his uncle Ahammad Ali had
a conflict over a trifling matter two years back. As a
sequel to the incident, they
killed Emon to take
revenge upon Iqbal, Nahid
said.
A Chittagong tribunal
yesterday sentenced four
people to death and two
others to life term imprisonment for killing an autorickshaw driver in 2008.
Sayeda Hosne ara, Judge,
Chittagong
Divisional
Public Safety Tribunal
handed down the verdict in
a jam-packed courtroom.
The convicts awarded
death sentence are Nurul
Alam, Abul Kalam, Kawsar
and Rubel.
After examining 17 out
of 27 prosecution witnesses the court handed down
the judgment, said the

Dhaka North City mayor warns of tough measures

against those causing mass inconvenience

Dhaka
North
City
Corporation Mayor Annisul Huq
has warned of tough measures
against anyone causing mass
inconvenience. He also said he
would take action against those
who resisted an eviction drive in
the capitals Tejgaon truck terminal.
Huq issued the warning at a
press conference held in a hotel
barely half a kilometre from
yesterdays scene of trouble,
where the mayor had been
seemingly confined by workers
opposing the eviction.
He managed to leave the
scene escorted by a large contingent of RAB and police personnel.
The mayor, however, dismissed media reports about his
confinement in the office of the
Truck and Covered Van Drivers
Union amidst clashes between
police and agitating workers,
saying, Yesterday's situation
would make anyone imagine
that the mayor had been kept
confined."
During the press meet held
at the La Vinci Hotel in Karwan
Bazar, Huq said, This created
some confusion. The media,
too, said the mayor was in a
room for two hours. We had a
large force that wanted to clean
up everything. But I repeatedly
cautioned against beating anyone. the mayor said. There
was some misunderstanding.
The workers had the wrong
impression but I managed to
talk to them. Then they clapped
and cheered.
The workers were earlier
upset on seeing rundown trucks
parked outside the terminal
being bulldozed.
Police responded by doing a
baton charge and lobbing tear-

gas shells, followed by shots

fired in the air. The blank shots
triggered a rumour about a
workers death, leading to an
aggravation of the situation and
the mayors apparent confinement.
When asked about those
opposing the eviction, Huq
said: They dont have the
courage to oppose the mayor. A
few leaders, who have been
illegally raising money in the
area, created the trouble. They
threw stones at the police.
Later, I went alone. I defied
them to throw stones at me, but
no one did. There were some
imported (outsider) elements
among them. Not everything
can be revealed here. They are
unlawful elementsforces of
the narcotics trade. The businessman-turned-peoples-representative warned of tough
measures against anyone
occupying roads in future. If
anyone tries to do anything
here they will be severely
thrashed.
A case had been lodged
against the troublemakers, he
said. We are trying to identify
the attackers. We will get infor-

mation about them. I have told

the police commissioner that
they must be arrested at any
cost.
The vandalism and arson
attacks by infuriated workers
left 15 city corporation vehicles,
including one belonging to the
mayors protocol, and several
pieces of equipment damaged,
and seven drivers injured. But
DMP Deputy Commissioner of
Tejgaon Division Biplab Kumar
Sarkar said no one had been
arrested so far.
The invitation letter sent to
the media by the North City
Corporation regarding the eviction drive had said Home
Minister Assaduzzaman Khan
Kamal, Shipping Minister
Shajahan Khan and Railways
minister Mazibul Hoque would
be present during the operation, but only Hoque showed
up. Kamal, who is the MP from
Tejgaon, and transport workers
leader Shajahan Khan were not
seen during the drive.
Hoque, for his part, had left
the scene, leaving the mayor in
the office of the Truck and
Covered Van Drivers Union.
When asked if any minister

had a hand in instigating the

violence, the mayor said he did
not think so.
He said almost all the illegal
structures at the terminal had
been removed. He added, however, that about eight houses
belonging
to
influential
encroachers remained on railway land. I have requested the
railway minister to take action
against them.
He said he had requested
the police commissioner to
ensure that no trucks were
parked on roads.
While trying to pacify the
irate workers on Sunday, the
mayor had promised a new terminal, but did not specify its
location in Mondays press conference. It will not be in
Tejgaon. I will look for a place
outside Dhaka.
The mayor condemned the
attacks on members of the
media during Sundays clashes.
Truck and Covered Van
Owners Association General
Secretary Rushtam Ali, who
also took part in the press conference, said the drive was not
against the terminal but against
the illegal structures in it.

public prosecutor.
According to the prosecution, the convicts hired
Mohammad Yusufs CNGrun auto-rickshaw from
Boddarhat
area
of
Chittagong city on May 03,
2008 for going to a shrine
at Anwara. When the autorickshaw
reached
Gomodndi
Fultola
in
Boalkhali Upazila, they
stabbed Yusuf to death and
took away his auto-rickshaw. In Barguna, a man
has been sentenced to
death for killing his brotherin-law in Sadar upazila in
2011. The condemned convict was identified as
Motaleb Bepari, 57.
According to the persecution, Motaleb stabbed his
brother-in-law Sohrab over
a land dispute at Jakir
Tabak village in Sadar
upazila on February 19,
2011, leaving him dead on
the spot.
Judge of the District and
Sessions Judges Court
Barekujjaman
handed
down the verdict yesterday.
A Kushtia court has sentenced a man to death for
killing his pregnant wife in

Daulatpur Upazila in 2011.

Additional District and
Sessions Judge Court-1s
judge Reza Md Alamgir
Hasan delivered the verdict
yesterday in presence of
convict Rokon Mandal.
According to prosecution, Mandal murdered his
wife Laili Khatun on the
night of Aug 26, 2011, following an argument.
Mandal dumped the
body of his wife in a nearby
drain. Police recovered the
decomposed remains two
days later.
Meanwhile, the High
Court yesterday upheld the
death sentences of five
people in a case over
Dhaka
businessman
Jahangir Alams murder in
2008. The late mans wife,
actress Sumaiya Kaniz
Sagarika, is one of the convicts. The four others are
Ibrahim alias Yasin, Hijra
Khalil, Al Amin and Khalil
Sheikh. The court yesterday also acquitted one of
the death-row convicts, Ali
Ashraf Liton, as the
charges against him could
not be proved beyond
doubt, said court officials.

Facebook to be
restored soon : Kamal
Home
minister
Asaduzzaman
Khan
Kamal says that the
social communication
site Facebook will be
restored for all in the
shortest possible time.
Kamal said this while
talking to media after
attending a programme
in the capital today.
Kamal said that government is trying to nab the
culprits, who have been
issuing death threats to
the country's eminent
people. Earlier, the State
Minister for Post and

Telecommunications,
Tarana Halim, said that
Facebook and other
social networking sites
will be resumed immediate after getting the
green signal from the
home ministry.

Pakistan summons
Bangladesh acting HC
Apparently rejecting
the facts on executed
war criminals, Pakistan
on Monday summoned
Bangladesh acting High
Commissioner
in
Islamabad and conveyed
that it is important to
move forward in the spirit
of goodwill, friendship
and harmony for the
collective good of the
people of Bangladesh
and
Pakistan.
The
Bangladesh
diplomat
was summoned to the
Pakistan Ministry of
Foreign
Affairs
by
Director General (SA &
SAARC)
and
was
informed that the government of Pakistan

rejected what they said

the
baseless
and
unfounded assertions of
the Bangladesh government conveyed in its
note of November 23,
according to Pakistan
Ministry
of
Foreign
Affairs. Bangladesh, earlier in its protest note,
informed
Pakistan
authorities that the unsolicited comments were
nothing less than
brazen interference
in the internal affairs of
Bangladesh, which was
unacceptable
and
hoped that Pakistan
would refrain from continuing such uncalled for
statements.

FIJISUN

www.fijisun-usa.com

Clinton Email Is
Released After Security
Concern Is Dismissed
Washington: The US
has announced changes
to its visa-waiver programme to screen passengers entering from
38 countries who are
allowed to enter America
without obtaining visas
before they travel, a
move intended to prevent an attack similar to
the one that struck Paris
last month.
Citizens of countries
mostly European -with which the US has a
visa-waiver programme
do not require a visa to
enter the United States.
While the US has
no such programme with
India,
the
latest
announcement indicates
that Indian visitors too
would face tighter security screening before
they are given visa to
enter the United States.
"These changes will,
among other measures,
improve our ability to

identify individuals who

may have travelled to
conflict zones, enhance
our ability to thwart terrorist attempts to travel
on lost or stolen passports, and will facilitate
increased informationsharing
with
our
European
partners,"
White House Press
Secretary, Josh Earnest
said. The Visa-Waiver
Programme (VWP) permits visa free travel for
20 million visitors per
year to the United States
for citizens of 38 program partner countries
around the world.

national neWs

December-2015

25

Chicago man arrested for gun threat linked to black teen's killing
Jabari R. Dean was
charged with transmitting a
threat in interstate commerce and, if convicted,
could face up to five years
in prison, the US Attorney
in Chicago said in a statement.
The University of Illinois
at Chicago said one of its
students, living off campus, was arrested for making the threat, which
caused the University of
Chicago to cancel classes

yesterday.
The officer,
who shot McDonald 16
times, was charged last
week with first-degree
murder. A judge on
Monday set a USD 1.5 million bond for the officer,
Jason Van Dyke.
The
FBI official who signed the
criminal complaint said
Dean said he posted the
threat from a phone but
took it down shortly after
posting it, according to the
criminal complaint.

Defiant Trump refuses to take

back 9/11 cheering claim
Washington: Republican
US presidential frontrunner
Donald Trump yesterday
refused to take back claims
he saw Muslims cheering in
New Jersey after the
September 11, 2001 attacks,
despite a lack of proof.
The brash real-estate
tycoon has drawn sweeping
condemnation after saying
earlier this month that Arab
and Muslim Americans had
publicly
rejoiced
the
unprecedented
terror

attacks on the United

States."It was 14 years ago
but I saw it on television, I
saw clips and so did many
other people. I've had hundreds of phone calls to the
Trump organization saying,
'We saw it. It was dancing in
the streets, Trump said.
Within days of 9/11,
police, fact-checkers and US
media debunked the rumors
that people were cheering
from rooftops of Jersey City,
across the river from

Manhattan.
Still, Trump
stood by his comments yesterday, "I saw it. So many
people saw it... And so why
would I take it back? I'm not
going to take it back."
Trump has cited an article at
the time saying authorities
detained 'a number' of people supposedly seen cheering in New Jersey. But there
was no indication in the article of thousands or even
hundreds of Muslims cheering.

Clinton Email Is Released After Security Concern Is Dismissed

WASHINGTON A trove of
Hillary Clintons emails released
by the State Department on
Monday shows efforts by aides to
solicit advice for a concussion she
sustained in 2012 and illustrates
Mrs. Clintons personal difficulty
with technology. The department
also made public one email after
rejecting concerns from an inspector general that it contained classified information.
That email, released along with
7,800 pages of messages that
Mrs. Clinton sent and received
when she was secretary of state,
was an exchange between P. J.
Crowley, at the time a State
Department spokesman, and Scott
Shane, a reporter for The New
York Times, concerning decisions
the newspaper had made about
publishing information from government documents it had
obtained from WikiLeaks.
A group of news organizations,
including The Times, worked
closely
with
WikiLeaks
in
November 2010 to publish redacted versions of dozens of diplomatic cables. The names of sensitive

sources for American diplomats

say, a Chinese human rights
activist or a Russian professor
were removed to prevent retaliation. In a few cases, references to
intelligence operations were also
removed.
But a year later, in late 2011,
after a dispute with an editor for
The Guardian, WikiLeaks posted
all 250,000 diplomatic cables without any editing, and they remain
on the Internet today.
In March, The Times reported
that Mrs. Clinton relied exclusively
on a personal email account when
she was secretary of state, an
unusual practice that made it easier for her to shield her records
from the public. In July, the inspector general for the intelligence
agencies, I. Charles McCullough
III, said that among Mrs. Clintons
emails was top secret information, the highest classification of
government intelligence.
Classified information is not
allowed outside secure government servers, and the F.B.I. is
investigating whether such information was mishandled in connec-

tion with Mrs. Clintons account.

Mr. McCullough had said the
State Department needed to
review two of Mrs. Clintons emails
to determine their level of classification. On Monday, the State

Department said that its review of

the email involving The Times,
which was forwarded to Mrs.
Clinton by Cheryl D. Mills, a top
aide, had been completed and that
the message was no longer classified. The department said it was
reviewing the other email. Among
the other emails released on
Monday as part of the State
Departments monthly production
of Mrs. Clintons past messages
was one to Philippe Reines, a senior aide. Under the subject line
Stupid question, Mrs. Clinton
asked Mr. Reines to help her find
the channel of the Showtime network.
Because I want to watch
Homeland, she explained.
Another email included a list of
94 countries Mrs. Clinton had not
visited as secretary of state. The
subject line was 100 and counting
... an apparent reference to the
nations she had visited.
With 7ish months left, plenty of
time to run up the score on total
countries, Mr. Reines wrote. 110
is a reasonable goal.
One exchange between Mrs.

Clinton and Mr. Reines revealed

that he had approached the commissioner of the National Football
League to ask for advice about the
concussion Mrs. Clinton had suffered after fainting in late 2012. In
the email, Mrs. Clinton said that
having a cracked head was no
fun.
Speaking of your cracked
head, Mr. Reines replied, I
reached out to both the Nfl commish (I remembered that his dad
held your Senate seat) and Bill
Frist. Frist responded wonderfully
and is ready to help. Mr. Frist, a
former senator from Tennessee, is
a physician.
Many of the emails released on
Monday were heavily redacted,
providing only tantalizing hints of
what was being discussed. One
exchange between Mrs. Clinton
and Huma Abedin, a close aide,
had the subject line Koch, an
apparent reference to either David
H. or Charles G. Koch, the billionaire brothers who have helped
finance conservative causes.
Other than the subject, the entire
email was redacted.

Colorado Planned Parenthood shooting suspect makes first court appearance

Speaking in a raspy
voice, Robert Lewis Dear
yesterday appeared via a
video hookup from the
jail, where he has been
held since surrendering
after Friday's five-hour
siege.
The clinic's parent
organization,
Planned
Parenthood, has said witnesses believe the gunman was motivated by
his opposition to abortion.
But Dear has been

described by acquaintances as a reclusive

loner who did not seem to
have strong political or
social opinions.
Police have declined
to speculate on a motive
for the attack. A law
enforcement official said
Dear told authorities, "no
more baby parts" during a
rambling statement after
being arrested.
Public defender Daniel
King, who represented

Colorado theater shooter

James Holmes will act as
Dear's attorney. The suspect is expected to be formally
charged
on
December 9.
Dear, 57, is accused of
fatally shooting a university police officer who
responded to the attack,
as well as an Iraq war
veteran and a mother of
two inside the clinic. Nine
other
people
were
wounded.

Obama vows better

trade ties with new
Argentine leader
Holding out the prospect
that Argentina's battered
economy could get some
much-needed help, Obama
called Macri to offer the promarket president-elect his
congratulations.Obama conveyed his commitment to
deepen cooperation on multilateral issues, improve
commercial ties and expand
opportunities in the energy
sector, according to the
White House.

26

Career Guide For 2015

December-2015

SAGITTARIUS

good and useful month.

Substantial gains in business and social status is
indicated in the first week of the
month. Concentration on your
current work is needed and
should be finished up as early
as possible. You will see
increased responsibilities and
obligation towards your family
members in the mid-month.
Children need special attention.
Recreational activities are
focussed in the last week of the
months.

favourable and pleasant

month. You may be able to
sort out many of your problems early this month. Change in
routine for good is indicated. You
may get gains through your
superiors or other influential persons. New start in the mid-month
will be beneficial. Appreciation
from the superiors will boost your
confidence up. Secrecy at your
place of work is required. You
can count on the last week of the
month as peaceful and quite
easy going.

s a result the
human circulatory system
and its arteries and
veins would function
very well. This effect
impacts on the sensory feelings. The piece
of ruby emits invariable rays which enter
in the human body
and affect his mind,
brain and thought
process. In consequence, it would flourish him in his personality and professional
activities.In the Ratna
Pareeksha adhhaya of
Vrihat samhita has
mentioned that the
kings wear favourable
gems and jewels to
insure the power and
prosperity.
If they
wore
unfavorable
gems, they get bad

APR 21-MAY 21

challenging month. You

would feel that you are more
in control of your own destiny.
It would be best to handle work on
your own. Travel is likely in the first
half. Educative programmes may
be attended. Unexpected expenditure at home is likely to upset your
mood. Mid-month is good for
socialising with friends and close
relatives. The second half will make
you feel more lethargic and fragile.
But time should not be wasted. A
sudden change in routine is also
indicated in the last week.

SEPT 24-OCT 23

manageable month for

you. The first half of the
month is more hopeful
and optimistic than the second one. You will be satisfies
with your current financial
position and try to manage
and straighten out the domestic problems successfully.
Good news in the first on second week may perk you up
considerably. An opportunity
to prove yourself may come
your way in the second half of
the months

GEMINI

ARIES

MAR 21-APR 20

sensitive and busy month. It is

important for you to be in the right
place at the right time. You should
check your speculative tendencies.
Publicity and public relation campaigns
should go particularly well. Where
romance is concerned, your luck can
change for better. During the mid month
family members should be given every
consideration. No stone should be left
unturned in the search for peace and
harmony at home. In the second half of
the month differences can be straightened out if you allow more give and
take to pervade all your relationship.

MAY 22-JUNE 21

mixed month. The first half

of the month will be a bit
too demanding as compared to the second half. Your
authority will be established
more firmly if you bring cooperation and teamwork in your attitude. You should get off to an
early start with your work. Do
not have routine affairs until the
last moment. It would be advisable not to indulge yourself in
extravagant whims. This could
lead to getting into an expensive
habit, which is hard to break.

How to gemstones heal?

can enhance your

LUCK!
ally rec-

ommended and
their specific effects
are not found in any of
these scriptural references.
However,
according to my Guru
one should always
wear a Gem which

LIBRA

hroughout a very busy

month for you. The first
week of the month requires
you to be more constructive and
original in your ideas and plans
for the rest of the month. You
will be able to get the cooperation and support of your superiors. New offers and opportunities should be picked up in the
mid month. Your health will need
attention and protection. Third
week of the month indicates
increased expenditure is luxury
goods, which can be avoided.

Gems

results. That is why it

is said that before putting on a gem or a
jewel, one must get
adequately tested for
its qualities and the
defects and certain rituals need to be done
before wearing the
gems depending upon
the horoscope. How
these gems are actu-

hopeful and courageous

month. The initial week of the
month is a bit busy and hectic
and you may feel some tension mentally. Patience is the need of the
hour. Success in new business ventures is likely in the mid month and
travel around the city is also indicated. Some of you may have to postpone the travelling plans. The second half of the month is more optimistic. Love life will be easy going
and health will be sound.

FEB 20-MAR 20

TAURUS

JUNE 22-JULY 23

OCT 24-NOV 22

PISCES

AUG 24-SEPT 23

CANCER
general week. You will
be eager to tie up your
affairs and get your
accounts into some semblance
or order. Local travel in the first
half of the month might enable
you to accomplish far more
than you had hoped. In the second half of the month it would
be best to take things easy and
not to get overly impatient. Your
schemes may win financial
backing that you need. Make
appointment to see influential
people.

FIJISUN

SCORPIO

JAN 21-FEB 19

mixed month. First half

of the month will be
peaceful and harmonious
as you will get some offers initially to supplement your
income. Your superiors have
high hopes from you. Domestic
front will remain cool and the
family member will back you
up as usual. Education academic activities are focussed
throughout the month. Minor
problems will be sorted out
with the advice of the elders at
home.

VIRGO

DEC 23-JAN 20

JULY 24-AUG 23

pleasant and active month.

You will find yourself in better position to get what you
want. If you are angling for a new
contract, be sure to hold out of
much better terms than the ones
being offered. You will be delighted to find that the atmosphere at
home is improved. The midmonth is also a most favourable
time for socialising, You may
meet a special someone extend
contracts and agreements.
Academic activities should be
pursued by students throughout.

CAPRICORN
n active and satisfactory
month. Be careful while
dealing with financial
matters as you tend to be
careless at one point or the
other. In the second week of
the month some sort of get
together or any function is features. Financial gain during the
mid month is possible if you
make a concrete effort towards
it. The third week of the month
indicates a bit problem or augmentative tension at home, but
will be straightened out soon.

AQUARIUS

LEO

NOV 23-DEC 22

www.fijisun-usa.com

empowers
the lords of the
ascendant,fifth and
ninth
houses
.Because these are
the points of Luck
(bhagya) and it is

amptly said
that the Lucky takes
the best of the
world-The strong and
the very knowledgeable just stand and
watch.

ver the ages,

experts have
suggested individuals to wear various
gemstones for healing
purposes. For e.g.
those have fear of vertigo or claustrophobia,
are often asked to wear
a moonstone. However,
how do gemstones
heal? Gemstones, as
per experts, have powerful energies. These
energies have a profound resonance with
the human body and
soul. In short, they act
as energy tools for the
body.
Embodying healing energies _: Just
like allopathic medicines that activate the

body's enzymes to
fight the infections,
gemstones activate
the body's inherent
force to heal and nourish the body. Each
gemstone has a different healing property
as it embodies a
unique energy and
offers
therapeutic
effects. Gemstones
therapies do work as
treatments that compliment healing methods & even as primary
t r e a t m e n t s .
Individuals struggling
emotionally, mental
stress, phobias or any
chronic or acute illnesses can opt for
gemstone therapy.
conitinues in next issue

FIJISUN

www.fijisun-usa.com

AfGHAN NeWS

December-2015

27

The Cost of Being the Bravest Woman in Afghanistan

oghul Khairzad is a senator from Afghanistan

who continues to
defend the rights of women in
her country despite devastating
attacks on her and her family.
On August 4, 2013, two
days before the Muslim festival
of Eid, the Taliban attacked my
vehicle as I drove my family
home. They killed my nineyear-old daughter Dunya and
my brother Ghulam Jailani.
Dunyas twin sister was paralyzed because of the injuries
she received. I was shot nine
times, including in my liver, lung
and leg. I was attacked again
on January 8, 2015, when four
armed men opened fire on my
car. I was in a coma for two
weeks and nearly died. I have
been struggling with my recovery ever since and have had to
leave Afghanistan for treatment.
My son is suffering from trauma
having witnessed the attack.
As soon as I came out of
hospital after the first attack I
went straight back to work.

Everyone said: How can you

be back with the threats youre
facing? But I wanted to show
them I can continue working.
And I wanted to motivate other
women to carry on their work,
too. The Ministry of Womens
Affairs gave me an award for
being the bravest woman in
Afghanistan.

MY FIGHT HASNT
COME CHEAP
Im not alone. The Taliban
have no mercy for anyone,
especially if its women working
for womens rights or women
who want to be in decisionmaking positions. They want to
spread fear and stop our activities. Of course, my fight hasnt
come cheap. My family lives in
constant fear. Sometimes I feel
ashamed because whatever
they have gone through is
because of my work and what I
believe. They say to me: Look
what you have done to us. We
have no life because of what

US issues travel advisory

against visiting Afghanistan
WASHINGTON - The United
States embassy has received
"credible reports of an imminent attack" in the Afghan capital of Kabul within next two
days from Monday.
A statement on the
embassy's website urged
American citizens to exercise
"extreme caution" if moving
around in Kabul during the next
48 hours from Monday. The
statement gave no more
details about the nature of the
threat. It said that the embassy

had no further information

about the targets, timing or
nature of the planned attack.
The statement warned "US citizens against travel to
Afghanistan" and "strongly"
urged those "who decide to
remain in Afghanistan to
review your personal security
plans, take appropriate steps
to enhance your personal safety, remain aware of your surroundings, monitor local media
for updates, and maintain a
high level of vigilance".

youre doing. I always thought

Id be unbreakable, but now I
think I am broken. Today, Im in
another country and Im safe
and protected, but for me it is
also a kind of defeat. I want to
be in Afghanistan and I want to
fight for the rights of the Afghan
people.
But I am very scared that my
family will be attacked again. I
feel like a cat, carrying my children from location to location,
without being able to put them
in one place and settle them in
safety.

WE ARE STRONGER
I have kept the intelligence
services informed of the threats
against me, but the official
response has been negligible.
And I still have no answer as to
who was responsible for killing
my daughter and brother.
The Afghan government
doesnt do anything for women.
If there was enough support, I
would have had more protection. If a male politician had suffered the threats and attacks I
faced, he would have been surrounded by bodyguards. But
when it comes to women, the
government just turns the other
way. My message to Afghan
women human-rights defenders is that we are far stronger
and more powerful than men. I
dont think we should think of
having equality with men in
Afghanistan, because these are
men who destroyed our country, who raped children, who did
so many bad things. We are far

better than them, and we

should fight for that betterment,
to identify our strengths and
move the situation on.

YOU GIVE ME POWER

I cant find enough words to
thank Amnesty International for
all the support they have given
me and other Afghan women in
very difficult situations. They
have stood by me and have
kept supporting me through different phases in my life. They
give me power. They give me
energy. Without them, I
wouldnt be able to be so passionate about my future. I am
asking the organization and its
supporters to continue supporting Afghan women, including
women who are in politics, the
civil service and other areas of
life who are trying to bring a
change to the lives of other
women. Im not giving up politics. I will continue fighting, I will
continue to stand for the rights
of the Afghan people. If you
have a higher mission in life, it
can be important enough to
keep you going. My plan is to
work hard enough to make a
better future for all the vulnerable women in my country who
are in serious need. Politics is
my passion, this is what I have
chosen to do, and this is what I
will continue doing. With
increasing insecurity across
Afghanistan, women humanrights defenders are under
threat more than ever before.
Sign Amnesty International's
petition to protect them.

Afghanistans capital
faces imminent attack,
US embassy warns
The US embassy said
it has received credible
reports of an imminent
attack in the Afghan
capital, Kabul.
A statement on the
embassys website on
Monday urged US citizens
to
exercise
extreme caution if moving around in Kabul during the next 48 hours.
The statement said the
embassy had no further
information about the
targets, timing or nature
of the planned attack.
The Taliban often
carry out attacks in
Kabul and elsewhere,
mainly targeting Afghan
security forces and foreigners. Supporters of

Islamic State have a

growing presence in
Afghanistan.
The
US
State
Department has long
warned against travel to
Afghanistan. A spokeswoman said the US
embassy had received
the reports of a specific
and credible imminent
threat, which was not
against the embassy, US
citizens or US interests.
She would not elaborate on the nature of the
threat or who was
behind it, but said: It
was sufficient enough
that we did feel that an
email and a message
should go out to US citizens in Kabul.

TN Congressman spends Thanksgiving in Afghanistan

(WBIR) Congressman
Phil
Roe
spent
his
Thanksgiving
in
Afghanistan visiting with
U.S. troops and officials.
Rep. Roe was part of a
bipartisan delegation that
made the overseas trip.
During the trip, Roe was
also briefed on the status of
the U.S. military mission
and met with Afghanistan
President Ghani at the presidential palace. The delegation included Reps. Beto
O'Rourke, Mark Takano,

Mike Coffman, Ann McLane

Kuster, and Dr. Ralph
Abraham. "It was an honor

to spend Thanksgiving with

our troops in Afghanistan,
and to hear about the

progress were making in

the country. I am extremely
grateful to our soldiers for
their service and for welcoming us with so much
pride and hospitality," Roe
said in a released statement. "These brave men
and women put themselves
in harms way every day,
and I couldnt be prouder of
their caliber. I also appreciate President Ghani taking
the time to meet with us and
for hosting us at the presidential palace.

bunch of girls into the hills and

hiking, and were able to get
acceptance by the farmers
and the other men who see
them there. Slowly but surely
it becomes a normal thing,
she said. Free to Run paid the
way for two Afghan women to
participate in a seven-day
race across the Chinese Gobi
desert. One of the women,

Zainab, went on to become

the first female marathon runner in Afghanistan in October.
Based on its success, Free
to Run decided to train a team
for another ultramarathon
this time in Sri Lanka.
Arzoo (her last name was
withheld to protect her identity) plans to participate in the
event in February. The 23
year old, who spent her childhood in Kabul, said she
played soccer with her classmates. But in a male-dominated country, she found it difficult as a woman to jog down
the street without getting
unwanted attention. The
upcoming ultramarathon in Sri
Lanka will provide a protected
and supportive environment,
along with a goal for something she loves to do. Arzoo

said she decided to sign up

because I believe in myself.
This marathon will make
me strong.
Before, she would run in
the early mornings when the
streets were empty, but she
expects that to change. I
have questioned myself about
when we are going to stop
being afraid, so thats why I
want to run during the day,
after December.In the Afghan
capital Kabul, Free to Run is
working to provide yoga and
dance classes to women in
the shelters. And it recently
hired a member of the national female boxing team of
Afghanistan to teach the
women how to box, and showing them how female athletes
can make it at the national
level.

In Afghanistan, using sports to fill the gender gap

y day, Stephanie Case

is a human rights officer for the U.N. Office
of the High Commissioner for
Human Rights in Gaza. After
hours, she operates the nonprofit Free to Run and shes
probably running, too. In
2012, the competitive longdistance runner moved to
Afghanistan, where she met
women in a shelter who had
experienced domestic abuse.
Case wanted to help them,
so she ran three ultramarathons and raised $10,000
for the shelter. The women
were grateful for the money
but also curious about her
experience running the races.
They couldnt even walk outside without a male chaperone, let alone participate in
sports. Case said she became

determined to find safe ways

for the women to get outside.
When women can engage in
movement and reconnect
their mind and body, especially when they have the chance
to do that outdoors, they are
finding new sides of themselves and reclaiming public
space, she said.
It changes perceptions
that society has of what role
women can and should play.
So in 2014, Case started
Free to Run, which brings
sports opportunities to women
and girls in conflict areas. The
group, which is incorporated
in New York, has a main office
in the Central Highlands of
Afghanistan, part of the
Himalayan mountain chain.
Most of its work is done in
Afghanistan.
Programs

include hiking clubs for students and training participants

in long-distance running
events. For the hiking activity,
Cases organization partnered
with a local environmental
organization, which has
strong relationships with farmers and other local workers.
Its only because of this
alliance that we can take a

28

cricket

December-2015

www.fijisun-usa.com

FIJISUN

BCCI cant be trusted, Miandad tells PCB

F

ormer
Pakistan
captain
Javed
Miandad believes
that the Pakistan Cricket
Board (PCB) should
tread carefully while
dealing with the BCCI
over the planned bilateral series in December. I
would advise them to be
very careful as the Indian

board cant be trusted to

keep
their
commitments, Miandad said.
His comments came
after
Pakistan
PM
Nawaz Sharif and Indian
PM
Narendra
Modi
shook hands and had a
brief chat on the sidelines of the global climate
summit in Paris. Cricket

analysts believe that this

development could pave
the way for the Indian
government clearing the
way for Pakistan and
India to play in Sri Lanka
in December.
But Miandad said he
would be very careful
while dealing with the
Indians. I would say

dont rush into things

and start having high
hopes of financial gains
from the India series.
The Indian board has
been constantly changing its stance and it
appears it is finding
excuses not to play us
despite its commitment
in the MoU signed

Its here to stay

between
the
two
boards, Miandad said.
I wouldnt be surprised if it backs out
again from playing with
us even in Sri Lanka.
Our government has
given clearance so what
is stopping them from
getting the required permission.

NZ seek ICC
clarification on
DRS clanger

Inaugural day-night Test in Adelaide was a huge success, enjoyed by cricket followers
across the world, says International Cricket Council chief executive David Richardson
and Pakistan tour next year.
The South Australian
Cricket Association is already
negotiating to host another
day-nighter against Pakistan
in Adelaide next December,
while South Africa are expected to get their first experience
of pink ball cricket in Brisbane
in the traditional home season
opening Test.

day-night test
CA aims for two more
D/N Tests against South
Africa and Pakistan
Thirty seven wickets
fell in three days at the
Adelaide Oval
ADELAIDE (Australia): More
pink-ball day-night Test
matches are planned after the
spectacular success of the historic trailblazer at the Adelaide
Oval, which won plaudits from
fans, players and cricket chiefs.
Test cricket got a pulsating
makeover as Australia claimed
a thrilling three-wicket win
over New Zealand in the first
Test in the games 138-year history to be played under lights.
Thirty-seven wickets tumbled
in three days as the pink ball
dominated the bat, in stark
contrast to the run-laden lowattended first two Tests in

Overall, its a
roaring success
1,20,000 people
turning up over
three days. People
are voting with their
feet. I think its here
to stay, which is
great
Brendon McCullum

Gabba to play host?

I dont see why not, right time,
place and conditions and the
fans are calling out for it, CA
chief
executive
James
Sutherland said of the chances
of the Gabba getting a pinkball Test.

The sun sets over the Adelaide Oval during the first day-night Test match between Australia and New
Zealand in Adelaide on Friday. PIC/AFP
Brisbane
and
Perth.
The crowds loved the experience with a total attendance of
123,736 fans thronging into
Adelaide Oval over the three
lively days.
The opening day gate of
47,441 was the biggest at the
Adelaide Test since the famous
1932-33 bodyline series. Host
broadcaster,
the
Nine
Network, was also beaming
with 3.19 million prime-time
TV viewers across the nation
watching Sundays last day, far
more than normal for the third
day of a Test.
International
Cricket
Council chief executive David
Richardson said the concept
was here to stay. The inaugural day-night Test in Adelaide
was a huge success, enjoyed by

to stay. Rival skippers Steve

Smith and Brendon McCullum
were in unison about the success of the initiative. The
whole Test match was a great
innovation, it was a great spectacle, and to get 120,000
people through the gates in
three days is absolutely amazing, said Australias Smith.
McCullum enthused: Its a
great concept. Overall, its a
roaring success 120,000
people turning up over three
days. People are voting with
David Richardson
their feet. I think its here to
cricket followers across the stay, which is great.
world, he said. Although dayThe
glowing
praise
night Tests will not be feasible appeared to justify Cricket
at every venue, it certainly pro- Australias initiative and is
vides a new dimension for emboldening them to flag the
players, spectators, broadcast- prospect of two more dayers and fans alike and it is here night Tests when South Africa

The South Australian

Cricket Association is
already negotiating to
host another day-nighter
against Pakistan in
Adelaide next December,
while South Africa are
expected to get their first
experience of pink ball
cricket in Brisbane
The Gabba is a good option
and have upgraded their lights,
and I would have thought a
balmy Test would be a pretty
good place to watch cricket.
Prior concerns over the durability and visibility of the pink
ball
prompted
Adelaide
ground staff to produce a
grassy pitch and square to
ensure the newly-designed ball
stayed in shape longer. There
were no major problems and
not once was the ball changed
during the three days of play.
McCullum felt there was a
touch too much grass on the
strip and said it was something
to keep in mind for the next
day-night Test. AFP

NZ coach Mike Hesson

ADELAIDE: New Zealand
have
contacted
the
International
Cricket
Council seeking answers
over a contentious review
that went against them at a
crucial time in the fluctuating day-night Test against
Australia, coach Mike
Hesson said yesterday.
Hesson is still fuming
over the decision by TV
umpire Nigel Llong on
Saturdays second day to
turn down a Decision
Review System (DRS) referral for a catch off Australias
Nathan Lyon. Lyon survived
after the Hot Spot thermal
imaging revealed a mark on
the back of his bat before he
had scored. It was a major
let-off for Australia, in trouble at 118 for eight and still
trailing the Kiwis first
innings total by 84 runs.

Lyon walked
Lyon was walking off the
ground believing he was out
before returning to continue
batting and join in a record
Australian trans-Tasman
series 74-run ninth-wicket
stand with Peter Nevill to
deliver his side a vital 22run first innings lead.
Australia
won
the
Adelaide Test by three wickets on the third day Sunday
to clinch a 2-0 series
victory. AFP

Starc: I honestly dont know when Ill come back

RIGHT: Australias
fast bowler
Mitchell Starc
makes his way up
past a Christmas
tree using crutches
after talking to the
media yesterday.
PIC:AP/PTI

ADELAIDE: Australias pace

spearhead Mitchell Starc said
yesterday it could be up to four
weeks before he knows when
he can bowl again after another injury setback in the
Adelaide day-night Test.
Starc bowled only nine
overs in New Zealands first
innings before he heard a crack
in his right foot and left the
field for treatment. Scans
revealed a stress fracture and
he is wearing a protective boot
so the foot can heal. The countrys premier fast bowler
following the recent retirement

of Mitchell Johnson said he

was unsure when he would be
back. Its about recovery now
and healing and getting back
on the horse and I guess working back on my bowling and
hopefully being back sooner
rather later, he said before
returning
home
after
Australias three-wicket win
over the Kiwis on Sunday.
I honestly dont know, he
added when asked when he
would be back. Once I get
home I can talk to the medical
staff a bit more and map it out
and see what it looks like, but

at the moment its trying to let the Ashes series in England

this year, and said that it was
the bone heal for now.
not causing him great bother
Until that bone heals
against New Zealand.
Ill be in this (protective) boot
Obviously, my ankle has
for another three to four weeks been a bit of an issue in the last
depending on how its going six to nine months and its
and then reassess it. Theres no actually been going OK, so its
point putting a time on it yet frustrating that the foot injury
until the bone heals.
has come up and I felt it crack
But the star fast bowler (25) that last ball, Starc said.
added that the foot injury is
It is something weve been
not something that will rule managing for a while and I had
me out of the entire summer a couple more cortisone after
season.
the Perth Test so its actually
Starc has been managing a something that has been mantroublesome right ankle since aged quite well. AFP

FIJISUN

www.fijisun-usa.com

islam today

december-2015

29

First Ahmadiyya Mosque in Japan Inaugurated

H

ead of Ahmadiyya
M u s l i m
Community inaugurates
Baitul Ahad
Mosque in Nagoya
The
Ahmadiyya
Muslim Community is
pleased to announce that
on 20 November 2015,
the World Head of the
Ahmadiyya
Muslim
Community, the Fifth
Khalifa (Caliph), His
Holiness, Hazrat Mirza
Masroor Ahmad inaugurated the Baitul Ahad
Mosque (Mosque of the
One God) in Nagoya,
Japan. It is the first
Mosque built by the
Ahmadiyya
Muslim
Community in the country.
His Holiness arrived at
the premises at 1pm local
time and after unveiling a
commemorative plaque
he proceeded to deliver
his
weekly
Friday
Sermon. The sermon was
broadcast live around the
world
on
MTA
International.
During his sermon, His
Holiness highlighted the
true purpose of a Mosque
and emphasised the need
for the local Ahmadi
Muslims to attain the
highest possible moral
and spiritual standards.

HAZRAT MIRZA
MASROOR AHMAD SAID:
Now this Mosque has
been built it is essential
that you discharge your
responsibilities and duties
in gratitude to Allah the
Almighty. Merely to say
All praise be to Allah
because we have accepted the Promised Messiah
(peace be upon him) or
because we are Ahmadi
Muslims is not enough.
Thus you should worship

here each day and seek

to improve your moral
standards and conduct
and to spread the true
teachings
of
Islam
throughout this nation.
The spread of the true
teachings
of
Islam
demands the highest
standards of worship. It
demands people who
forego bloodshed and
cruelty and instead strive
towards a Jihad of selfreformation and improvement. Regrettably, the
Muslims of today are
becoming ever more
extreme to the extent that
some claim to serve Islam
through the brutal and
merciless killings of innocent people.
His Holiness categorically condemned the
recent Paris terrorist
attacks and said the perpetrators had served only
to unjustly defame the
name of Islam.

HAZRAT MIRZA
MASROOR AHMAD SAID:
The recent terrorist
attacks in Paris can only
be described as despicable and barbaric. Such
attacks
are
entirely
against the teachings of
Islam and so it is the
heavy responsibility of
Ahmadi
Muslims
to
spread the true and
peaceful teachings of

DURING HIS SERMON, HIS HOLINESS

HIGHLIGHTED THE TRUE PURPOSE OF A MOSQUE
AND EMPHASISED THE NEED FOR THE LOCAL
AHMADI MUSLIMS TO ATTAIN THE HIGHEST POSSIBLE MORAL AND SPIRITUAL STANDARDS.

Islam.
His Holiness said that
Allah the Almighty had
given
the
Ahmadi
Muslims living in Japan
the opportunity to live
their lives in peace and
prosperity and had granted them the religious
freedom they did not have
in Pakistan.

HAZRAT MIRZA
MASROOR AHMAD SAID:
You should reflect
upon the blessings God
has manifested upon you
as a result of living here.
There are no restrictions
upon your worship. You
are not imprisoned for
referring to your Mosques
as Mosques. Rather

than resulting in a prison

sentence, your salutations of peace are appreciated and welcomed in
this nation.
Continuing,
His
Holiness said it was
incumbent upon the local
Ahmadi Muslims to present the true face of Islam
in Japan, as was the stated desire of the Promised
Messiah (peace be upon
him). Does this freedom
you have here in Japan
not demand a pious and
moral reformation within
you? Does it not demand
that you forego your selfish desires and seek the
pleasure
of
God
Almighty? Does it not
require that you exhibit
love and compassion
amongst yourselves and
spread it in the society
you live in? Concluding,
Hazrat Mirza Masroor
Ahmad presented details
of the Mosque itself and
its
construction.
His
Holiness said there were
times when it seemed
that gaining planning permission from the local
authorities would not be
possible, however Allah
the Almighty removed
such obstacles.
His Holiness praised
the financial sacrifices of
local Ahmadi Muslim
men, women and children
for the sake of the construction of the Mosque
and also praised the local
non-Muslim community
for their support and kindness. Baitul Ahad is the
largest Mosque in Japan
accommodating up to 800
worshippers (main prayer
area, terrace and halls).
The building lies on a
main road in Nagoya, has
excellent transport links,
accommodation facilities,
offices and a library.

30

bollywooD

December-2015

A
A road
roadless
less

travelled
travelled
Is thinking outside the box and
making different kind of shows
worth the risk in the television
industry? We find out

LETTY MARIAM ABRAHAM

letty.abraham@mid-day.com

IF WE look at the television

shows today, one can count the
number of shows that dare to
showcase a concept that does
not involve the run-of-the-mill
kitchen politics. But how many
of them actually end up getting
the desired Television Rating
Point (TRP) is the question. Its
ironical that on one hand we
keep complaining about the
content on Indian television
and compare it to the variety
the West has to offer and on
the other, a show with a different concept doesnt get the
much-needed popularity. So
where lies the problem?
Is it that the audiences are
not receptive to quality content? Or the channels rely way
too much on what dictates on
the Television Rating Point
(TRP) board? Or that many
dont want to take the risk of
trying something different?
The Anil Kapoor-starrer
24, which showcased the story
of an anti-terrorist unit agent
who had 24 hours to save the
country from a major terrorist
attack, garnered appreciation
from the audience. It was one
of the shows that defied stereotypes and brought a fresh
storyline to many Indian
households. With the shoot of
the second season of the show
having begun, we spoke to
writers and producers about
the business that are the TRPs.

Be the change
Aatish Kapadia, who has produced and written shows like
Sarabhai vs Sarabhai and Baa
Bahoo Aur Baby says that he
has nothing against the typical
saas-bahu shows, but aims at
entertaining responsibly. He
explains, Since I began writing and directing shows, I have
made a conscious effort to be
socially more responsible.
India, which largely has a single
television
household
scenario, it becomes imperative that makers are socially
responsible because even children watch these shows. Even
if the show doesnt impart
knowledge its important that
we entertain them responsibly.
I have nothing against saas
bahu shows personally.
Bhairavi Raichura, who
shot to fame with Hum Paanch
(1995), claims that the TRPs of
a few shows will see a dip when
the change is initiated.
However, eventually the content will evolve. There is
nothing wrong in taking the
safe route, however a change
cannot be brought about without taking risks. Initially a few
shows might not do well as far
as the TRPs are concerned but
thats how things will evolve.
Everyone channels and production houses want to air
good content. I am not saying
that saas bahu shows are not
worth watching; they highlight
tuesday, december 1, 2015, mumbai, web www.mid-day.com,
twitter @mid_day
a beautiful
relationship which
Anil Kapoor at the poster launch of 24 season 2
is why they end up being pop-

21

hitlist

www.fijisun-usa.com

ular. This is the reason why we

did Satrangi Sasural after
Chhal Sheh Aur Maat and
Laut Aao Trisha

Taking the risk

Srishti Behl Arya, whose recent
show
Reporters
starring
Rajeev
Khandelwal
and
Kritika Kamra just went off air
is of the opinion that the problem
doesnt
lie
with
experimenting, but with the
fact that there is no way of
monitoring the audience of a
particular show. My entire
career is based on doing things
differently. I believe whats
important is you should tell a
story you connect with. My
shows arent the typical saasbahu sagas, but are still
family-oriented. I dont think
its a risk to try something different, the problem is that
there is nothing to monitor the
audience that watches my kind
of shows. If you go online, you
see that my show garners a lot
hits on the digital platform.
The feedback for a show like
Reporters was great, she elaborates.
So is the TRP system flawed
and is that the reason why
shows with good content are
not being recognised? Of
course its flawed. We are a
country of several tastes; if
only a certain section of people
are being monitored, how do
we judge the response to a
show on that basis? There
maybe a small percentage of
people who are watching my
shows, and that small percent-

Kritika Kamra and Rajeev Khandelwal in Reporters

Of course the TRP system

is flawed. We are a
country of several tastes;
if only a certain section of people
are being monitored, how do we
judge the response to a show on
that basis? There maybe a small
percentage of people who are
watching my shows, and that small
percentage is a large number. Our
system cannot qualify that number
SRISHTI BEHL ARYA, producer,
Reporters

look at the whole picture you

will never know what works
and what doesnt. I think every
set top box should have a TRP
reader. That way you will know
the pulse of the audience.
While TRP system is slowly
evolving, are finite series a
temporary way to solve the
issue of regressive daily soaps?
Srishti said, A finite series is
definitely a better way to tell a
story, because that way you
have a definitive beginning,
middle and end. You dont drag
things endlessly. You are honest to the story and not just
trying to fill up time.
However, Bhairavi believes
that finite or not, audience
The TRP game
wants change. Finite series
Pushtie Shakti, who did Mahi are a welcome change but
Way, claims that there is no audience always wants change.
getting away from the TRP When we had finite series eargame so the best way to deal lier, daily soaps had become
with it is to have more measur- the new flavour and people
ing units. I am not sure if the lapped it up. Now finite series
TRP system is flawed. I havent are coming back as a trend. Its
thought about it. For me, a constant change, but daily
whats important is that I am soaps are not going to go out of
doing something that will style for sure.
mean something to someone.
Aatish claims that come
When Mahi Way came out it what may, he will never change
was exactly that. Unfortunately his approach and join the
the show didnt get much pub- bandwagon not even for TRPs.
licity but if you check online or I will continue taking the risk
my inbox, people request that of doing something different.
the show be brought back. Even if I get rejected I will keep
Unfortunately, the channel trying and I will never sucunderstands
only
TRPs. cumb to the bandwagon. I
However, things are changing.
to show
evils of
The
way todont
love want
anything
is tothe
realize
tweet talk
From what I hear, they are society or highlight them.
it mayThose
be lostwho say that they are
looking at other ways that
to measMugdha Godse
ure TRPs. Earlier it used to be trying to make a difference are
@mugdhagodse267
in one particular segment, but fake. They are just glorifying it,
BHAIRAVI RAICHURA,
now a larger section is being and are trying to misuse the
actress/producer
taken into account. Unless you situation.

There is nothing
wrong in taking the
safe route, however
a change cannot be
brought about
without taking risks.
Initially a few shows
might not do well as
far as the TRPs are
concerned but that's
how things will
evolve

Ranbir-Deepika create magic

age is a large number. Our system cannot qualify that

number, retorts Srishti.
Bhairavi, on the other hand
believes that the TRP system
isnt flawed and change is on its
way. I dont think the TRP
system is flawed. Some shows
do well digitally because a
large number of audience dont
get the time to watch it when it
airs on television. We did have
a problem initially but things
are changing now. A lot more
homes are being monitored,
the measuring unit has
increased and segregated too.
We now have a rural meter and
an urban meter, she says.

BO stats

R38.23

crore

GAURAV DUBEY

box office

Tamasha (opening weekend)

gaurav.dubey@mid-day.com

The lead
pairs latest
outing rakes
in R38.28 cr
in its
opening
weekend
Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone in Tamasha

FIJISUN

THE much-awaited Ranbir

Kapoor and Deepika Padukone
starrer Tamasha, which hit
theatres last week, raked in
R38.23 crore in its opening
weekend.
Says a source, The film is
getting mixed reviews, but has
managed to pull crowds to theatres. Audiences have loved
Ranbir and Deepika in the film
and after seeing the weekend
figures, the film is expected to
do well on weekdays.
According to Amod Mehra,
After the success of the lead-

R3.10

crore

Prem Ratan Dhan Payo

(third week; overall:
R206.63 crore)
ing pairs last film Yeh Jawaani
Hai Deewani (2013), this one
was supposed to being in huge
crowds but the flick opened to
average houses on Friday.
However, with critics having
loved it, the numbers grew
steadily on Saturday and further on Sunday. The film will
have to maintain the momen-

tum or it will end up losing

money, as it is a big-budget
film. One aspect that cannot be
ignored is that although it is
going strong in multiplexes, it
is being rejected in single
screens.
Trade expert Taran Adarsh
also stresses on the fact that
the film needs to hold fort during weekdays. He says,
Tamasha has been liked by the
niche audience and did a good
business over the weekend. But
the real test is now. The film
needs to do well on weekdays
as well as its an expensive film.
So lets wait and watch.
Meanwhile, Diwali release
Prem Ratan Dhan Payo maintained its slow run at the box
office in its third weekend. The
film minted R3.10 crore last
week, taking the total collections to R206.63 crore in India.

bollywood
Jaya Prada, Sridevi bury the hatchet
FIJISUN

www.fijisun-usa.com

december-2015

31

Boney Kapoor, Sridevi and Jaya Prada at the wedding

reception in Hyderabad

Jaya Prada and Sridevi (right)

Everyone was surprised to see Sridevi, along with

hubby Boney Kapoor, attend the wedding reception of
Jaya Pradas nephew, Siddharth, in Hyderabad on
Sunday. During their heydays in the 1980s, Jaya and
Sri were considered rivals. The two featured together
in several films like Mawaali (1983) and Tohfa (1984)
among others. Buzz is that while shooting for Maqsad
(1984) co-stars Rajesh Khanna and Jeetendra locked
Jaya and Sri in the same make-up room, hoping that
they would start talking, but their efforts proved
futile. Over three decades later, the South sirens finally
patched up and let bygones be byogones.

Akshay Kumar and Twinkle

The Khiladis staycation

Twinkles birthday is on December 29, but hubby Akshay
Kumar has begun celebrating a month ahead. The couple were
visiting a hotel in Colaba for dinner when he decided to spend
the night there as well. The Khiladi tweeted, Easy like Sunday
morning! Dinner @ Taj last nite extended to an impromptu
staycation. There is nothing like springing a surprise on0 the
wife.

spotted

Dwayne Johnson and (left) Priyanka

Chopra

Taking on the
world
Dwayne Johnson (better known as
The Rock) took Priyanka Chopra by
surprise on social media. The actorwresler liked her snapshot and posted
a message, World domination, baby.
The actress replied, World domination all the way @TheRock. Keep
paving the way. To which The Rock
replied, I know youre right there
w/me PC...: Priyanka reply came
quick, I so am.

SAYALI BHAGAT had a fan girl moment with PARESH RAWAL

backstage during the staging of his play in the city recently. They were
overheard chatting in Gujarati.

Lifes a beach
Hailing from New Delhi, Sidharth
Malhotra has a fascination for
beaches and the seaside. A recent
shooting spell for Nitya Mehras
Baar Baar Dekho took him to
Alibag. The actor was bowled over
by the coastal town and he
particularly enjoyed the ferry
rides from Mumbai to
Alibag.

Workout
obsession
Gautam Rode claims to be the
fittest actor on the small screen and
makes sure that he works out every
day. He has been shooting for
Suryaputra Karn for the last two
months in a remote place near
Gautam Rode
Umbergaon in Gujarat. As there are
no gyms in the area, the actor has set up a makeshift gym where
the cast has been staying. Its not only him, but also his co-stars
who work out together.

Whats Ash trying to hide?

AISHWARYA RAI BACHCHAN was spotted at Film City in
Goregoan for a shoot. When she realised that there were
photographers around, she preferred to cover her face with her
hair and walk away briskly. PIC/YOGEN SHAH

Sidharth
Malhotra

PRIYANKA CHOPRA: DID 'BAJIRAO MASTANI' FOR SANJAY LEELA BHANSALI

riyanka Chopra, who is

not playing the title role
in 'Bajirao Mastani',
says she has a very challenging role as Kashibai in
the film, which she took on
only for director Sanjay Leela
Bhansali. "I did this film for
Sanjay Leela Bhansali. I
know you all will ask me,
'Mastani is played by
Deepika (Padukone), and
Bajirao is played by Ranveer
(Singh). So why did you do

this film?' Let me tell you, I

was the first person to be
cast in this film. I remember
Sanjay came to me with this
script and he was clear he
wanted me to do this film,"
Priyanka said here. "I
thought Kashibai's character
was very heart-breaking.
This is a feminine character
and it was very challenging
for me to do the role... It's a
special film for me. I am just
super excited to be part of

it," she added. Priyanka

Chopra will be seen playing
Bajirao's first wife in the
movie. "It was not easy to do
this role. I wanted to get the
Maharashtrian accent right
and there were many dramatic scenes, which I used
to take back home. I am generally a switch on and off
actor, but this character was
very heart-wrenching." The
film is slated for December
18 release.

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December-2015

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